Another Lexington coffee shop is going through big changes, could be closing
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- A Cup of Common Wealth is for sale as owner Salvador Sanchez prepares to leave Lexington.
- Salvador Sanchez posted that June 2 would be his last shift at the coffee house.
- The café opened in 2013 at 105 Eastern Avenue with then-business partner Chris Ortiz.
Following the news that Third Street Stuff and Coffee is shutting down indefinitely after the retirement of founder Pat Gerhard, another Lexington coffee house with a strong following is also making changes.
A Cup of Common Wealth is up for sale as owner Salvador Sanchez is leaving Lexington.
Sanchez posted on the cafe’s social media that June 2 would be his last shift at the coffee house he started in 2013 at 105 Eastern Avenue with then-business partner Chris Ortiz.
In an email, Sanchez said he has taken a job in New York and does not want to attempt to operate the coffee shop from afar indefinitely.
“We are actively looking for new owner/operators, an investor, a partnership or some type of hybrid,” Sanchez said. “Whatever the option we go with, the goal is for me not to be the owner/operator.”
He’s hoping someone will want to keep the place going. If not, he said it likely would be shutting down by the end of the year.
That, he said, “would give time for staff to make decisions and find other jobs and for customers to have their goodbyes.”
This year, the shop has been celebrating 13 years of pouring coffee and lifting spirits. On May 31, they held an Alumni Reunion that drew dozens. And on June 5, for Sal’s birthday, they will celebrate with a send-off from 9 to 11 a.m.
When Cup of Common Wealth opened, it had a unique feature: A “pay-it-forward” board where customers could buy a drink for someone else designate the parameters. The idea proved hugely popular, and the shop built a loyal following.
In 2016, Cup of Common Wealth was named Lexington Small Business of the Year by Commerce Lexington.
There were multiple expansions and changes: The shop added a mercantile, which later closed. A location was added to University of Kentucky’s Cornerstone Exchange for a few years before closing in 2025. The shop expanded to add nearby Chocolate Holler before Sanchez sold that off; it closed then reopened, moved to Greyline, then closed again.
At one point, Sanchez became part of an effort to revive and keep Alfalfa downtown before Sanchez exited the restaurant. At the Eastern Avenue location, the shop’s side window was frequently smashed and replaced.
Now, the future is up in the air for Cup of Common Wealth. Sanchez said he has been somewhat cryptic on social media because things are still uncertain, but he did not want to leave without updating customers.
“As soon as we know, we’ll let people know,” he said.
