By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

Pelham resident Kai Smith wants everyone to leave her new coffee shop with the same thoughts filling their minds.

“Our motto is going to be ‘Happiness and positivity in every cup,’” Smith said, noting the shop’s walls will be adorned with a plethora of positive phrases. “No matter how they walk in, I want them to leave with just a little bit of happiness.”

Smith, a local insurance agent, is working to put the final touches on her new coffee shop, Kai’s Koffee, before the store’s grand opening in early November.

When it opens, Kai’s Koffee will be off U.S. 31 behind Louie’s Fine Foods and next to Papa G’s Billiards.

The shop will offer a wide range of beverages from special blend coffees and lattes to teas. Kai’s Koffee also will feature food offerings such as salads and scones.

Smith said all of her coffees will be brewed using fresh beans shipped from Alabama growers, and said the shop eventually will offer live music and karaoke. The store will offer free Wi-Fi, and will even have a meeting room available for large groups.

Smith said she has wanted to open a coffee shop for many years, and has been working to save enough money to do so.

“I really feel like Pelham – and even Alabaster, Helena and Hoover – get left out. We don’t really have a traditional local coffee shop,” Smith said. “I decided to put it in Pelham because Pelham is really growing right now.

“It’s about community. When people want to know what’s going on, they come to the coffee house,” Smith said.

Smith has not yet set an opening date for the shop, but said she is working to open the doors in early November.

Kai’s Koffee will be open from 6 a.m.-1 p.m. Monday-Friday. The store will reopen from 5-9 p.m. on Fridays, and will be open from 6 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturdays.