Soak up the good vibes at Arts Centre café grand opening!

West Gippsland Art Centre’s new café Coffee Vibes will officially open to the public on Monday 29 May with an event guaranteed to serve up delicious café classics and family friendly fun! 

The social enterprise cafe is delivered in partnership between Baw Baw Shire Council and Knoxbrooke to provide valuable employment opportunities for people living with a disability.  

To celebrate Coffee Vibes’ grand opening, friendly staff will be onsite from 8am, serving up all kinds of coffees and hot drinks as well as café staples including toasties, cakes and biscuits. Outside on the forecourt, DJ Nige will be spinning tunes from 10am, followed by an official opening and ribbon cutting by Baw Baw Shire Mayor Annemarie McCabe and Regional Manager for Knoxbrooke, Claire Cutler at 10.30am.  

To keep the little ones entertained, Fiddlesticks Performing Arts will be hosting a jam session from 9:45am and there will be Myli Storytime sessions from 12pm in the Arts Centre foyer.   

“It’s going to be a great morning”, says Mayor McCabe. “I can’t wait for Coffee Vibes to officially open to our community. It’s just what we need right next to Civic Park and the surrounding playgrounds - a perfect spot to meet up with friends and family and grab a coffee. And that’s without even mentioning the social benefits that this café will bring to our community. On behalf of Council, we are delighted to partner with Knoxbrooke for such an exciting, innovative service." 

Regional Manager for Knoxbrooke, Claire Cutler says the Coffee Vibes team are looking forward to meeting some of Baw Baw’s locals at the opening. “As part of Coffee Vibes, we employ people living with a disability and support their aspirations to learn hospitality skills and the joy of serving members of the public. Our amazing staff members have been on site over the past week, getting familiar with the setup and preparing for the big opening. We can’t wait to officially open our doors and welcome the local community.” 

Coffee Vibes will operate each day from 8am-3pm and is a fully accessible facility capable of accommodating people with mobility support needs. All profits generated are reinvested back into Knoxbrooke’s local disability support services and other social enterprises. 

Image: Coffee Vibes staff members, Michael and Kelly gearing up for the grand opening.