How I Built This Coffee Roasting Company

The END. I'm kidding, It's not. It's day by day. There's things you can do to fill your life that speak towards becoming sober and your journey. I've found a few things helpful and talk about those things along with the core concepts and mental framing that might help.  

For some they can hard stop their drinking. It's possible. For others it's a journey. This is my view about that inbetween drinking and not drinking era. I talk about co-depdency, al anon, AA, NA, parents and much more.

This is me and it's ok.I drank. I don't anymore. I did other stuff too. I don't anymore. Life is better and i'm better because of it. What got me here to today is very much related to me actually being this way pretty much for the duration of this business. If you're struggling drinking or handling it I hope some of what I have to say is helpful.

BRUH Jack Tatum fan spotted? yes. indeed. Last episode fbefore the last epsidoe before the world comes crashing down forever because we can't talk about alcoholics and drug use. WERE DONE. FOREVER. LMAO.

I'm a big fan of taking those steps. Now progress isn't a straight line but so long as you keep on your path and stay true to your own self I think you'll arrive at the destination you're ok with. Your dream and your vision can be whatever you want it to be, so long as it's yours.  

Sick nattys, Honey's arent honey! Robics are just fermenty coffees! Lmao!  They all slap. Sometimes. 

Deepish dive into the C market. I've long held out on not talking about this but I think it's time as the market has stabilized and we're into another cycle. Tips on booking coffee, pricing, and what is commodity coffee plus the narratives around it!

Why don't you sell cinnamon and sugar free syrup? How about wings? What about tarot readings?  Leadership, to me, in part, is about seperating the signal from the noise. And most of it is noise.   

Afraid of failure? Flying? Bad Customers? Bad Reviews? The Future? The past coming back? Look into that fear and say bump you. 

I've got it. You got it. They don't (because they're crazy?) Guess what you'll have a ton in business. I go over some of my most recent regrets and how I'm processing it. Hope it helps!

JKJKJKJK. Just going over some traits I feel I've seen across my years and some archtypes.   

Bad can be good? Yeah. It can. I guess it depends. Just another lesson to learn, another chance for growth. 

Following up on the hyper positive episodes I go into the difference between the scars being you still or being part of you. If you the type who works for 8 years somewhere and you don't get promoted, maybe it's a you thing and some unresolved childhood trauma and that's also not my problem to solve either. 

Lol, oops. Guess we're not good enough for wal mart!

Lets talk about what I am. Nobody is perfect and that's ok.

What you name your company can be pretty important in my opinion. I peered into the abyss and came up with Royal Mile.  Funny thing is it can also not mean a damn thing at all and still succeed. I go over the nuance of that with real examples! Lets gooooooooo.

We're out of our opening phase at the cafes and this whole season has been about the cafes and opening them. We're out of the purchase stage, we're into the beginning stages of talking to people but there's a stage where you create that baseline then maintain then move beyond. It's a complicated process and of course has to be honest and meaningful. Stepping away is also hard for all parties. Hope this helps!

Treat every customer as the first customer. Do it for years and hey maybe you'll have a customer base!

In beforing "yeah well jamie YOU FORGOT THIS". I list A hundred or so items you'll need and the important things to know because just opening a shop isn't what you've already dreamed of.   

BACK LIGHTING FAST. Spend some time alone (gottem!) when you've been running things is super key. Because it allows you to face the things you didn't expect when running a business. It's not all money and roasting sick nattys or robic's. Running a business exposes you in so many ways. It's a journey and if you're willing to ride it you might want to start to building a system of self-help and support to face all the challenges. Because yo, they keep coming. So I go over why's and hows. Therapy and walks help. BTW. 

I left, but now i'm back. So much to talk about but I'm winging it this episode. Sort of like how it's just done as a scrappy small business without nestle or chobani money backing me. No shade.

Finding a space is not easy especially when moving out. It's not snapping your fingers. You need to time to find the next location and it has to be a good fit. Hopefully sharing my experience helps!

This is short on Specifics but maybe my story will help somewhat understand what all you need to do to start lining up financing for a larger project. Basically.   1. Get a business credit card day one.  2. Get a business checking account.  3. Register for DNB. (Dun and bradstreet) 4. And hope you make big money. 

Every business plan is different but maybe it's useful to think of it like some college paper. You want to state how thing are, why they are and how you can improve with all points leading towards your conclusion of getting that sweet sweet money with a bucket load of interest on the other side. I mostly go over how I approached it all and then turned it over to the bank for them to laugh at in the office.

This may come as a shocker but Data collection over time will help you adapt and grow your business. Minimize wasting time on the perfection of things and focus on how things should be vs how maybe you think the industry/others think.  

Slowing down the podcast a little amid the chaos surrounding being in business I think is a good call. The ability to be able to be calm and focus is essential to functioning especially in extreme circumstances as well as the ability to pivot. A bit of a self help episode, maybe for me more so than you but good stuff all around. See you in Jan with music!

Bacccccccck. Time to go through what's been in the works and motivations on kicking this thing alive again. Just don't ask about creme brule coffee. 

Because of the rona I've decided to put a pause on this whole thing. It seems like bad judgement to talk about building a business when so many are shuttered and probably closing within the next 6 months along with the massive unemployment our industry has. Just a longish update on where we are and what we're doing along with some notes for the future for those that are curious I guess.     

That new mic thoughhh! Season three was something I really wasn't sure I wanted to do but during a fairly awful day (or week?) with landlords, pets dying, loans and never ending creme brûlée kcup suggestions I said enough is enough I'll just make an entire season out of this experience. 

Quite a few people have asked "what should I do" and then drop where they are in this business life so I naturally avoid that and go from the start. What would I do going back in time to day one. There are 3-4 main things I think that would make you more than likely to succeed provided you have the opportunities on the other side. Good luck friends, see you in the next one.   

At a certain point you arrive, but are you finished? There's a whole lot next every single day for someone starting out. However next may be shutting down or if you're lucky next may be expanding. Next may just be something different. Regardless of that constantly having to answer that question can be daunting. It could also even drive you. But for me it's been an internal question and that is not without its struggles. RIP biggie.   

Ever work in a bar before the smoking bans? It's almost like that. There's so much to cover and probably not enough time or energy to do so but I run through the machines and their manufactures you might want to check out at various stages on your journey.  They're all equally as good. Diedrich, Ambex, Probat, Giesen, Mill City, you can't go wrong.    

Lets me real Direct Trade is a thing and we use it to help sell bags to get across why anyone should buy it. But people can buy it without visiting origin. And sometimes just visiting origin makes you realize how little of an effect you have and why it's important to not overstate or oversell.

Going hard in the paint on the cliched summer so it's time to talk about cold coffee game. Lots of things going on here so my A game is not exactly there but there's some nuggets about how to translate an element you will invariably do to your business as you start out.    

Went on a trip and saw the prices in other stores. I do this a lot now. Everybody has been asking about the price of coffee in orlando compared to philadelphia so due to overwhelming demand - here we gooooo. 

I believe wholesale accounts is one of the three pillars for sales. The ability to acquire but also maintain is fundamentally important. Without understanding, accepting, or adapting to the nuance at each account will ultimately doom you. I equate the management therein 

Having a business that is your sole source of income means you're at a constant risk of it going down also taking you down. Your back is against the wall every day. The more you work at yourself before you get to that point, the more you realize who you are both good and bad, the more you can identify people and make good judgement calls the better things will be. The more diverse set of tools you have at your disposal to empower your mind to make a choice that is not destructive is the single most important thing you can have at being in business. It's about you being the absolute best you can be and the way I got to that point was losing basically everything and chipping away using the little bit I had left. 

The cold call is something I was terrible about at the start. I didn't really understand that aspect as no work really translates other than doing it. Further most accounts onboard a bit differently and understanding the value of them before hand helps set expectations later down the road. I do my best to walk through a general overview of getting "one" account. 

You'll spend way more time bagging and roasting than you do cupping or making it taste like a thing. There's no magic. Go buy food safe buckets! 12 quart buckets hold about 7-8 pounds. Bag sealers Hand Sealer - ebay. Different watts works to varying degrees. 12-$25. (8-16 inch) Band Sealer ebay. $150 buys a basic one. Band Sealer ebay $600 gets you one with air/nitro connectors. Scale - you'll need one that does more than your pour overs. Those aren't rated for commercial use. The scales you have to have are similar to the ones deli counters have at grocery stores but anything rated for commercial is fine. I spent about $200 on my scale. Look to spend about $100. You'll need weights and measures to come test and approve the scale each year for you to properly sell/retail. Rattleware has a scoop. I saw it in a ritual video years ago and bought one. Best investment. Several large roasters I've heard or seen use them. Once you see it you wont not spot it. You'll max out at 10 bags between loads before it starts going off the rails where production backs up or quality of roasts suffer.  As you scale up there are weigh and fill machines and while pricey they are entirely worth it but you'll be really large or have excess cash.  12 gallon heavy duty jaw'd tote at home depot for $10 stores 48 12oz bags fully packed. I see a lot of boxes being used and for shipment. Fully loaded those totes are 36 pounds.  My totes are 4 years old and the return on investment has been glorious.

I'm aiming for an over-arching theme to this years content and it's about time. I've spoken about time management before but this year I really want to mine all facets of time as it relates to this business. There's so much that's coming that you're unaware of - those "I wish I knew about this moment",  and I'm hopeful that sharing these experiences is useful. RIP Trub Trub Blanchard 2000?-2019.      

Holiday Prep is really worthwhile, give it a shot. It's more than just holiday labels and bags. I go over the few things that really help for the most insane time of year - for me at least. Bags, Coffee, Hiring, Maximizing Sales, Mailing List and all that exciting and compelling stuff.

Winter time brings colds (for me) but also a time for hiring people. Employee's are expensive and a lot of work but "are you hiring" is a big indicator for the overall health of your company. It means more work than you can take on and that you're so profitable you can make a living and also someone else live off the money the business generates.  Being keenly aware of what need the fulfill can help place you and them in a spot for success. You also need to experience and have bad hires so hopefully my anecdotes help there. Pro tips: delete all your smack talk online, don't talk about giesha's at interviews, and don't show up late on your first day.  

Cupping can be really useful for marketing and gram posts but making it about becoming a better roaster is really useful and valuable. I go through my methods toward becoming a better cupping, roaster, and person through the journey. 

YOU CHARGE HOW MUCH??!?!?!?! What do you charge for a thing? How much is something truly worth? How much it is worth to you vs someone else? How about discounts? Is this a good deal? Why are you so high? Why are you so low? Well THEY only give 10oz. Or 12oz! Just 12oz!    Pricing of a thing is a never-ending source of feedback and opinions, at least for me. I try my best to unpack how one might go about setting their price.  

Everything predicates on what your lineup is as that's where the money comes from. Your lineup can be anything you want however it's useful to know what everyone is doing or what has been done. Consider the past for your current setup and don't be afraid to embrace it. What sells, sells, what doesn't doesn't. Don't be afraid to drop or change gears if that is what the audience is dictating.  

There are a lot of conclusions to be made about your business at any time. Year one or year 5. Conclusions to be made about your choices and your output. Talking about all that and the future.

Coffee Roasting is cool and all but you do a lot more than cupping and crafting with them arms. It's a lot of Bagging, Lifting, making GAINS, Sweeping, Brushing, Cleaning, and then cupping the same coffees over and over. 

This is a super meaty rundown on why you should be aware of every financial aspect going on in your business. COGS, Quickbooks, Payroll and stuff like that. This is not meant to be financial advice that replaces you paying an actual person who does this work for a living. Hire an accountant, lawyer and don't just listen to what I say.

People love to say things and be heard. You'll hear it everywhere and about everything from little to big. Start gearing up for feedback aka criticism or praise from email and anywhere online, in person, random encounters at the pool and guess what...you ran over their dog and paybacks are a mofo.

Lots of time and effort goes into finding the lines of business out there from either farmers markets, grocery, cafe, guest roaster or online. I go over all of those with their good and bad, and probably could go deeper into them but know this: you are your own champion. Go out there and be awesome.