Out of grief and a ‘foster fail’ comes Wichita’s first cat cafe
Last year, a trio of partners announced they planned to capitalize on a popular national trend and open Wichita’s first cat cafe.
“I know that if we don’t do this, someone else is going to,” one partner said.
Now, that’s exactly what’s happening.
The trio never opened their planned Cafe Purrfict, and now business and life partners Julia Hardenburger and Noah Souza are opening their own Snick’s Cat Cafe.
“We are 100 percent definitely opening,” Souza said.
The two signed a lease at the Shops at Tallgrass near 21st and Rock Road.
Austin Swisher of J.P. Weigand & Sons and Craig Simon of Landmark Commercial Real Estate handled the deal for the 3,400-square-foot space, which will be next to the Backyard Nature Center.
Hardenburger said there are “lots of crazy assumptions” about what a cat cafe is.
There will be two separate areas of the business divided by a wall with big windows.
One side will be a traditional coffee shop, and there will be no cats allowed.
“They’re not going to be mingling with the kitchen or anything like that,” Souza said.
The other side will be a cat lounge populated with cats and kittens available for adoption from the Wichita Animal Action League.
“We joke they are our inventory supply,” Souza said.
In a statement, WAAL said it is excited about the partnership and how many cat lives it could save.
“We think the concept of a cat cafe is an amazing idea and will be a wonderful fit for the Wichita community.”
Guests can make an appointment or walk in if there are slots available to visit the cats. Visits are $15 an hour.
Souza said by the time the cats leave WAAL and come to the lounge, they’ll be vaccinated, spayed or neutered and microchipped.
The idea is instead of having to wait in a shelter, the cats can interact with guests “and show their personalities in a much more comfortable space,” Hardenburger said.
In addition to being able to watch the cats from the cafe side through windows, customers can purchase Snick Snacks, such as bags of trail mix or pastries, to take with them while visiting the lounge side.
On the cafe side, there also will be a boutique that Hardenburger said is different than what she’s seen other cat cafes offer.
There will be branded merchandise, toys and accessories for cats and cat-themed items for humans, such as art, jewelry and home decor.
Hardenburger will feature some kitschy 1950s-style items, such as tapestries, “that are kind of crazy cat lady but in a fun way.”
She’ll have other quirky vintage cat-related items as well.
“I’ve always been interested in vintage everything.”
Hardenburger and Souza’s own pet cat experiences led them to want to start this business.
In 2022, Souza said, “We lost our cat Snicker from lymphoma.”
About six months after Snicker died, Souza and Hardenburger decided it might help their healing if they fostered some cats.
Souza said they got Pippa and Felix from WAAL and “we pretty much immediately foster failed.”
Meaning they quickly adopted the cats.
They like the idea of being able to help other cats as well, and they think others will want to help, too. The two have started a Kickstarter fund to help with the cafe and offer tiers of rewards for fellow feline lovers.
There’s quite a bit of construction that has to happen in the space, including installing powerful air purifiers along with double doors to make sure the cats stay on the lounge side, so the business likely won’t open until July.
Hardenburger said she and Souza hope to make an impact in the cat community through adoptions.
She said at similar cat cafes nationally, there is an average adoption rate of six to eight cats a week, “which is really amazing.”
