I may be oversensitive, but this comment feels a bit like you’re trolling, Holly. Usually, I’d just delete the comment as extraneous to the spirit of what we’re trying to accomplish, but in this case I’ll make an exception.
Mill City Roasters is no more a Chinese brand than Apple, Kitchen-Aid, or Levis.
We build professional quality, high performance production equipment with the best after sale support in the industry. You can buy a cheaper roaster, but you cannot purchase a better built or better performing machine at any price.
We build in China for economy, but our build quality is so high that most people do not notice. Neither do we enlist resellers or commissioned sales agents. We prefer to sell and support our machines directly as this allows us to price superior equipment within reach of start up and small businesses worldwide. In so doing, we’ve become one world’s largest manufacturers of commercial coffee roasters producing the only North American NRTL certified machines (UL/ETL/CSA) built in Asia.
Beyond that, we’re highly transparent about everything we do and how we do it. We don’t artificially inflate prices to dangle fake discounts. We offer professional business to business consultative services. We’re not used car salesmen masquerading as “coffee guys.” We do have a little fun with this once in a while, but our feeling is mostly gratitude that we get to work in coffee. It’s a privilege to guide people that share our passion for quality to commercial success.
On a personal note, to those who would question my patriotism: I served in the US Marine Corps lugging loaded weapons around in unfriendly places, still stand to cover my heart when the flag passes by, and built machinery for industry in the US for 28 years. I also married into an extended Chinese immigrant family, have traveled and worked in China over 20+ years of my 35+ year total business career and I know about as much about China as a guy can know. I am as equally aware of problems in China as I am about problems in the US. They aren’t the same, but I don’t think any of those problems in either country are solved by finger wagging, finger pointing, or origin shaming. I think most of the problems both countries face are better solved with honesty, openness, empathy and the humility that comes with an appreciation of our shared humanity.
I’m not needy. It’s not necessary that you believe my “pitch” or that my motives are relatively pure. I’m here for my people. My people are my family, my coworkers in the US and in China, and the folks that own our machines. I’d prefer that everyone might someday be my people, but I’m not losing any sleep over anyone that chooses not to be because of where we build our machines.
Whether you believe it or not, you have my very best wishes for your complete and total success.
Steve
PS. If this becomes “troll” bait, please know that I’ll only be automatically deleting any comment I deem to be unhelpful or unprofitable to the conversation as a whole. Save your infurytainment for someone that cares.
