Wild Joe's Closing in Bozeman After 25 Years

Summary: Wild Joe's, the coffee shop in downtown Bozeman's Lovelace Building on Main Street, announced on September 28, 2026 that it is closing after 25 years because its lease is being involuntarily terminated. Owner Erica Brubaker says a new business is already lined up for the space.

Why is Wild Joe's closing in Bozeman?

Wild Joe's is closing because its lease is being terminated, according to a September 28 post on the coffee shop's Facebook page. The shop isn't choosing to leave. A new business is already in line to rent the space.

Owner Erica Brubaker broke the news herself. "After 25 years," she wrote, "our lease will be involuntarily terminated and a new business is already in line to rent the space."

What's going into the Wild Joe's space?

The new tenant hasn't been officially announced. But a general manager posting on Indeed lists 18 West Main Street, Wild Joe's address, as the location for a new Montana Knife Company store. According to the posting, the Missoula-based knife maker is opening a Main Street location with a Black Rifle Coffee Company shop inside, modeled on its Missoula flagship.

What happened with the Lovelace Building?

For decades, the Lovelace was one of the last places downtown where you could live on a month-to-month lease without being priced out. The building stayed in the same family for generations, and the owners were committed to keeping the apartments affordable. Many of the tenants stayed for decades.

Ski bums, artists, writers, service workers, and so many other people who otherwise couldn't have made Bozeman work called the Lovelace home. According to Travel Squire, Edward Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway's grandson, lived in the Lovelace during the '90s, when he painted a mural for The Leaf and Bean, just across Main Street.  

In 2020, the family sold the Lovelace to a private owner, and the building changed fast. The third-floor apartments were vacated and converted into private luxury residences. The second-floor apartments became office space.

The coffee shop on the ground floor was the one piece of the old Lovelace the new ownership didn't change. But now it’s changing too. Seeing Wild Joe's go feels like the final page of a long chapter in the Lovelace's history.

How can Bozeman support Wild Joe's before it closes?

In the Facebook post, Erica continued "Wild Joe's has never belonged to me," she wrote. "It has always been ours." She described the shop as a place "where we can all gather, no matter who you are," and named the people she'll miss most: "this amazing group of baristas, students, professionals, families, and retirees, who gather daily to share a space with each other."

Wild Joe's last day is December 5, when they will have their "last hurrah" during Christmas Stroll. Until then, the best way to support the family and staff is to keep showing up for your usual order.

Her post included an open call to the community: "If you or someone you know is interested in continuing the Wild Joe's legacy in a new location, we would love to hear from you. These community gathering places must continue to exist."

Erica and her family also own Paridae Café, near MAP Brewing on the north side of Bozeman, so it's a good place to get your coffee fix once Wild Joe's closes.

It's been a rough stretch for Bozeman's longtime businesses, with Joe's Parkway also nearing its closing date. As for who's moving into the Wild Joe's space, we'll be covering it as soon as we know.

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