Five places to visit in Colfax

The best way to experience the dozens of businesses in downtown Colfax is on foot. The mix includes anchors such as Ace Hardware and Tick Klock Drug, along with many stores that sell second-hand goods. It’s worth parking your car and walking up and down both sides of the Main Street to see what merchandise matches your interests. The inventory at many merchants frequently rotates.

Here are five suggestions of relatively new businesses to get started:

Appel Heights

Address: 103 S. Main St.

Hours: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday; 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday and Friday

What makes it special: Stone-milled flour, made from wheat grown and harvested in the Pacific Northwest. The business mills wheat and garbanzo beans from the Pacific Northwest into flour. One popular product is a “monster” cookie mix made from garbanzo bean flour that’s gluten free and higher in protein and fiber than a traditional cookie mix.

Origin story: Mark and Jaimie Appel were looking for a way to incorporate their families’ roots of farming in a business they could run with their children alongside them.

Owners: Mark and Jaimie Appel.

Bully For You

Address: 220 N. Main St.

Hours: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday

What makes it special: The upper-end, carefully curated inventory is a mix of previously owned and new furniture, rugs, lighting, home decor, clothing, stationery and gifts from the United States and overseas at affordable prices. The store is housed in a 5,000-square-foot, three-story, brick-and-mortar 1893 building.

Origin story: Austin and Laura Storm were thinking about the kind of store they would like to shop at when they created Bully For You. The store caters to people on budgets such as recent college graduates who want to buy unique, sturdy, stylish items.

Owners: Austin and Laura Storm

The Coco Bee

Address: 201 N. Main St.

Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday

What makes it special: It carries hundreds of bath, body and home products such as lotions, oils, creams and candles. They all are made with clean, natural, organic ingredients such as beeswax sourced from hives in Washington, Idaho and Oregon.

Origin story: The Coco Bee was founded by Kylie Pietila who suffers from allergies. Tired of experiencing symptoms like headaches or hives from everyday activities such as lighting candles or applying lotion, she developed alternatives with high-quality, nontoxic ingredients. One of her first venues was at the Palouse Empire Fair near Colfax in 2019 where she sold almost everything she brought that she had made at her home.

Owner: Kylie Pietila.

The Colfax Mercantile

Address: 214 N. Main St.

Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday

What makes it special: Customers can shop at nine stores in a single stop. They are Granny La La Baked Goods, Home Sweet Home Treats, The Rustic Star, A Little Bit Rusty, Red Arrow Vintage, Soldiers of Dirt, Legend Rock Design, Tom & Susie Creations and Macrame by Amy.

Origin story: The Colfax Mercantile is a collaboration with the building owners, Austin and Laura Storm, and the vendors of the Colfax Mercantile. It was founded to give aspiring entrepreneurs a low-cost way to experiment with business concepts and help revitalize downtown Colfax.

Owners: Owned jointly by the vendors.

Serfes Foods

Address: 212 N. Main St.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday

What makes it special: Simple dishes such as grilled cheese sandwiches are elevated by top-notch ingredients and thoughtful preparation at Serfes. Its winter menu features sandwiches, soup, salads and homemade desserts. In upcoming weeks, it will drop its soups in its shift to its summer menu that has a different selection of salads, sandwiches and sweets as well as crepes and smoothies.

Origin story: Susana Serfes was a chef working at a Washington State University sorority when she had a dream with a take-out container and a label that made her realize God wanted her to open a business. By coincidence, one day when she was praying for more direction about the venture, she happened to be outside the building where Serfes is now. Within hours, she had reached the owner of the property who allowed her to tour the building. Soon she opened Serfes, which started during COVID, serving food to-go before blossoming into the restaurant it is now.

Owners: Alex and Susana Serfes, along with their grown children, Carolyn Farmer, a one-time front house trainer for the Cheesecake Factory, Chris Martinez, a chef, and Daniel Gonzalez.