A Festus woman is moving her home-based business to a shop in Imperial.
Nichole Josephson, 42, said she plans to open Baked & Brewed, a bakery and coffee shop, in early September at 1010 Imperial Main St., where beauty salon Hair on Main previously operated.
Josephson said she has been delivering baked goods from her home for 14 years and has been selling coffee at the Arnold Farmers Market for the past four years.
“I have wanted to own my own restaurant since I was 15, and I have found the perfect location,” said Josephson, who has four children between the ages of 7 and 27. “I’m pretty excited. There has been a lot of long, hard work to get here.”
Josephson said she will make all of her baked goods from scratch and will serve a variety of cakes, cupcakes, banana breads, cookies and pies.
She also will sell coffee, lattes and tea, adding that she may start selling ice cream in summer 2026.

Josephson said she selected the Imperial location because of how close it is to area schools and the potential customers who drive in that area.
“In my business plan, I had to come up with who my audience will be, and that is teachers, moms and business people,” she said. “Where I am on Main Street, there are three or four schools nearby, and there are three hair salons.”
Josephson said her shop will be open from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. She plans to hire two employees.
She said she will offer curbside pickup, and she will have weekly specials, including Teacher Tuesdays when she will offer delivery to nearby schools.
The shop also will have three tables for indoor dining and four to five seats in an internet cafe for people to use the shop’s free internet connection.
Josephson also said she hopes to hold events like painting nights, birthday parties and Bible studies.
She said she has invested about $80,000 to renovate the building to change it from a beauty salon to a bakery and coffee shop.
“It is going to be open baking, so customers will be able to see me baking behind the counter,” Josephson said. “It is a little different. You will get to watch me decorate cakes.”
For more information, go to the Baked & Brewed Facebook page.