Bee Roll shows off her new Beezy’s space, and talks about her plans to incubate and launch new companies

Several weeks ago I had Bee Roll, the owner of Ypsilanti’s Beezy’s cafe, on the radio with me to discuss her plans to expand into a second location. And, today, after eating lunch at her place, I asked Bee if she’d show me around the space, which is directly across the street from Beezy’s, and tell me a little more about what she has in mind.

In the video, which you can watch below, Bee walks me around the space, and explains what will happen in the various areas of the soon-to-open two-story operation. For the most part, according to Bee, this new space will be an event and production space, allowing her to host relatively large affairs, like weddings, as well as crank out bigger catering jobs. [The building has a large kitchen in back, that, when functional, should really increase her productivity significantly.] Among other things, Bee she’s she’s also considering the possibly of offering grab-and-go foods at this location, and hosting pop-up events.

One thing Bee said did catch me a little off-guard. She mentioned, about half way through our conversation, that, after running this second spot for two or three years, she’d like to hand it off to a partner or two, who would buy-out her interest in the business and either take it over as is, or morph it into something else, “like a brewery,” she hinted. She said that she’s gotten to a point in her career where she’d like to start spending more time helping people in the extended Beezy’s family to launch and run their own businesses. “(It would be) kind of modeled after the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses, but maybe a little more fluid,” she tells me. [If you happen to be out there, Theresa Rickloff, Bee mentions you by name at this point, suggesting that you come back and launch the pie company in earnest.]

Our conversation is short and worth watching if you care about Ypsi’s Washington Street corridor. I particularly liked the part where she said that, from upstairs in the new location, she can easily spy on her employees at Beezy’s. Oh, and I also liked the part of the conversation, toward the end, where it dawned on me that the back door of this new space of hers is just a few feet away from the back door of the building that Jesse Kranyak and I are in the process of buying.

Here’s the video. Check it out… and, I guess, let Bee know if you want to have your wedding there this summer.

[note: If the Star Wars reference I made when walking over her little metal bridge thing didn’t make sense, here’s a photo that should help explain.]