Category Archives: Customer Stories

Will Chilton’s background is in sales and logistics. His career in the coffee industry started when he came to Frame Coffee Company in 2021. Now, he works in the Frame Coffee Co roastery in the design district of Dallas, Texas, alongside founder and roaster Jake Smith, who works on the company’s MCR-15, 15 kilogram roaster… Read More

In New Orleans, Louisiana, owner and general manager Alyssa Johnson roasts for the cafe-roastery Undergrowth Coffee on an MCR-2, 2 kilogram roaster. The roaster lives in a renovated pottery studio, fed by a gas line that used to fire the kiln.  Photo credit – Undergrowth Coffee Setting the Scene Alyssa’s coffee career started at Finger… Read More

Alex Behrens of Roselle, Illinois roasts for Maple Leaf Coffee Roasters on an MCR-6, 6 kilogram roaster in a commercial building in a strip mall in town. He built it out himself, turning a relatively blank space into a roastery that feeds a town that’s in what he calls a “coffee desert.” Like a craft… Read More

Rob Arnold roasts on the Pregame Coffee MCR-2, 2 kilogram roaster a machine which lives in the company’s cafe in Louisville, Kentucky. He specializes in coffee cocktails, and crafting a shop atmosphere that’s equal parts cocktail bar and coffee bar. Setting the Scene Rob came to the coffee sector from health and wellness. He also… Read More

Nathan Hamood, President and Director of Coffee for Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters, roasts on an MCR-3, 3 kilogram roaster in a commercial production facility in Rochester, Michigan. He is one of five on the roasting team, supplying three locations with over eight hundred pounds of coffee weekly. Setting the Scene Dessert Oasis started as a… Read More

Head Roaster Adrian Maldonado roasts for Hatchet Coffee Roasters on an MCR-20, 20 kilogram roaster in a commercial space next door to the Hatchet Cafe in Boone, North Carolina. The space is open to the public, and often invites in cafe customers looking for a backstage pass into the coffee shop world. Adrian loves giving… Read More

Luke Pigott of New Wave Coffee Roasters roasts on an MCR-20, 20 kilogram roaster in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The roastery is a small production space nestled in partner company Be Caffeinated’s cafe kitchen, where the New Wave team focuses on business-to-business wholesale. Setting the Scene Before founding New Wave, Luke Pigott spent the better part of… Read More

Jared Trimbo, founder of Full Keel Coffee, roasts on an MCR-20, 20 kilogram roaster in Washburn, Wisconsin. His company shares a building with his wife, Amy Trimbo, owner of AdventureUs sewing studio. Every week, he dedicates one full day to roasting and one full day to packaging and shipping. Setting the Scene A longtime coffee… Read More

Dave Smithman roasts for Yellow Dog Coffee Roasters on his home property in Manahawkin, New Jersey. Oakley, the Yellow Dog namesake, accompanies Dave to the roastery on production days when he’s not focused on his other job–watching the chickens. Setting the Scene Dave came to coffee after he started working nights in the late 2010s.… Read More

Josh Cosio is on the cusp of opening a cafe-roastery in a renovated warehouse in Vestavia Hills, a suburb of Birmingham, Alabama. After a year of leasing time on a colleague’s MCR-10, 10 kilogram roaster to roast Cala Coffee’s orders, he’s looking forward to the open roasting schedule and increased space that will come along… Read More

Partners Michelle “Misha” Bussemey and Tosca Cesaretti co-own Springtown Roasters, a company based in San Marcos, Texas. They roast out of a small private building on their property built expressly for the roasting operation, where Tosca, head roaster, spends four to five days a week in the space to meet demands. Setting the Scene In… Read More

Keith Lilja roasts for Tala Coffee Roasters in Libertyville, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. He uses an MCR-10, 10 kilogram roaster to supply his company, which includes a production space, a cafe, and two more cafes slated to open in the next year. Setting the Scene After graduating from Northern Michigan University with a degree… Read More

Justin Earl roasts for Humble Joe’s Coffee Company on an MCR-2, 2 kilogram roaster on his home property in Seymour, Indiana. Lauren Earl, co-founder, works behind-the-scenes in packaging, social media, and other general support.  The company started as a side project for the Earls, something to focus on in the evenings and weekends when the… Read More

Mike Ouano is the sole roaster for Bean Here Coffee Shop and Bean Here Lab & Studios in Sienna and Arcola, two suburbs south of Houston, Texas. The Coffee Lab is where he spends most of his time, roasting on his MCR-10, 10 kilogram roaster to supply both locations with high-quality coffee. Setting the Scene… Read More

Naomi Joe founder Kyle Willingham roasts on an MCR-1, 1 kilogram roaster in a small commercial roasting facility in Tacoma, Washington. Originally his life plan was a piloting career, but after attending flight school in 2017 and finding nothing but minimum-wage contract gigs, he decided to switch to the food and beverage industry. The pivot… Read More

Erik and Sean Kopack are identical twins co-running KOBROS COFFEE, a coffee shop in Norfolk, Virginia. They roast in a warehouse space a few blocks down from the cafe, using their MCR-3, 3 kilogram roaster to support their cafe and keep their restaurant partners in good coffee. Setting the Scene Both the Kopack brothers served… Read More

Charlie is the youngest Sawatsky son. Instead of taking up the baton of his father’s landscaping business, he followed him into specialty coffee. Now, he does the bulk of the roasting for Barking Irons Coffee Roastery. The company is a family affair. Charlie’s dad Keith is the salesman, and mom Teresa is the floater; she… Read More

For Jim Whitmarsh, Mondays and Tuesdays are espresso roasting days. He heads into the Trail Creek Coffee roastery in Kasson, Minnesota, and roasts everything else per order. The commercial space, which is under construction, is hectic now, but will soon be optimized for a much bigger production of coffee. Both Jim and Crystal are looking… Read More

Industrial Coffee Company was founded by Levy Moroshan in Portland, Oregon, and recently relocated to Nampa, Idaho. The team includes Levy’s wife Christina, in charge of coffee cart operations and supply; Liz Mangeac, who assists Levy with local deliveries; and Dave Mangeac, who’s a full-time support in the roastery as well as at popup events.… Read More

Shane Kilpatrick roasts for Hill Road Coffee Roasters on a MCR-3D in a commercial roastery in Reading, Pennsylvania. The roastery is open to the public, offering a coffee bar and a to-go experience curated for the area’s walking distri Setting the Scene After being exposed to craft coffee by his girlfriend in the mid-2010s, Shane… Read More