A well-loved Wilmington coffee shop debuted a new name and logo this summer – a move that’s helping lay the groundwork for future growth.

The travel-themed, downtown cafe formerly known as Cheeky Monkey Coffee Company has rebranded into Maroon Monkey Coffee. Owner Maggie Blackham opted for the change after learning Cheeky Monkey was already a trademarked business name.

Blackham said she began looking into the coffee shop’s name last year as she started planning to add another location under the Cheeky Monkey brand. As she dove into the legal aspects of future growth, Blackham discovered that a California-based business already owns the trademark to Cheeky Monkey.

“We wanted to own what we had,” Blackham said, so she opted for the name change.

Maroon Monkey seemed close enough to the original name that it wouldn’t throw off Cheeky Monkey regulars and fans, Blackham said, and the maroon leaf monkey, a primate native to Southeast Asia, actually resembles the monkey depicted on the shop’s logo.

Plus, Maroon Monkey wasn't trademarked, which meant it was up for grabs for Blackham.

The shop launched its rebrand on social media in mid-June, Blackham said. Since then, they’ve been phasing in the new name with a new logo and branded merchandise. 

Some people still refer to the coffee shop by its old name, but that’s to be expected, Blackham said. The business built a strong and loyal following during its years under the Cheeky Monkey brand. Blackham inherited the name when she bought the business, located at 124 S. Front St., in 2021.

Now, Blackham has plans to grow the business with a new drive-thru location. While the expansion is still in the “planning stages,” Blackham is eyeing growing parts of the Cape Fear region like Ogden, Hampstead and Leland for the new location.

But that won’t mean the end of Maroon Monkey’s downtown shop, Blackham said, where she plans to continue serving downtown’s tourists and regulars.

“We really like serving where we’re at right now,” she said.

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