Athens is known for its coffee culture. Shops such as Donkey Coffee, Brenen’s Coffee Cafe and Athens Rise and Grind are just some of the many spots around town both students and locals can go for their morning shot of espresso or afternoon pick-me-up.
But about 25 minutes north of Uptown in the village of Glouster, Dirty Girl Coffee is one of the lesser-known shops in the county. Located at 82 High St., right along the town’s main road, the roaster was founded in 2015 and moved to its current location in July 2023.
Jenna Keiffer, the media and social change manager and a barista at Dirty Girl, said the company does all operations out of its shop, including online sales.
“We do our sales out of here, but we also do e-commerce out of here as well, and then we do some wholesale out of here as well,” she said. “So shipping to bigger companies all around the United States.”
Jane Cavarozzi, co-founder of Dirty Girl Coffee, said the shop helps to establish their name and bring business to town.
“Our coffee shop is literally just a love letter to Glouster,” Cavarozzi said. “It exists just to be in touch with our community and have that skin in the game. And to fix up a building ourselves.”
The business sells both whole and ground beans, teas and merchandise on its web shop. The shop also offers a subscription service where customers can get beans shipped to their house for 10% off, plus shipping and tax. Shipping costs are based on weight and location.
Founded in 2015 by Cavarozzi and Kara Tripp, the pair originally roasted beans in their home and sold the beans and drinks at local farmers markets. Cavarozzi said her dog inspired the name of the coffee shop.
“We were on a pontoon boat with our friends, and we had this old lab named Gypsy,” she said. “She jumped up on the boat, just shook and got mud, muck and gross lake stuff all over us. So we're like, we're a bunch of dirty girls.”
Not only does Dirty Girl roast and brew coffee, but the business also helps give back to the Glouster community. Keiffer said its main mission is to help the town it has grown in.
“One of the things that is really important to Dirty Girl Coffee is giving back to our community because the community has done so much for us,” she said. “Jane is a part of Glouster Revitalization Organization, and they do a lot of giving back to the community.”
The mission of GRO is to provide funding and resources from businesses to go back into the community, building safe spaces such as parks and revive abandoned buildings by bringing in more business. Cavarozzi is the board president.
Along with its support of GRO, Dirty Girl Coffee also works on projects aimed at women in rural and Appalachian Ohio and creating economic and social opportunities for them. Cavarozzi is also the board chair of the Ohio Women’s Coalition, or OWC, and a board member for the Athens County Foundation, or ACF.
OWC works to help women in these underserved regions to improve economic conditions and achieve financial stability. The OWC is based out of Columbus and works with women across the state. The ACF works for the economic and social development of Athens county.
Dirty Girl Coffee is open seven days a week, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday. Dirty Girl’s beans can be found at Jefferson Market, Kindred Market and other locations around southeast Ohio that can be found on the Dirty Girl website.
