Coffee Importers - Advise needed !

[Rudge]

Hi all,

I have been having trouble trying to get information on importing coffee to the US from Africa ............... i don''t know where to start! My wife and I would like to leave our current jobs over the next 1-3 years and get into the coffee business.

We are interested in delving into a kind of \"intergrated\" approach, I have contacts in Africa who would like to have a \"trusted\" agent who can assist them in importing coffee but where would I start? Who would I sell the coffee to?

The second business is starting a coffee shop that we hope will develop into a chain, there is a lot of information on this and I believe we will see a consultant as soon as we complete our business plan.

I understand that running my own business is not just a calculated risk but involves working many hours I am looking forward to that but also getting back a direct ROI.

Thanks!

 

[crema123]

My understanding for the US is that you must import by the container, which means you better know what you're doing, have cuppers quality checking in the warehouse, etc. i think this would be tough to just jump into - if you're serious I would recommend working for a roaster and learning about the business.

 

[Rudge]

Importing Coffee

Crema123 I do appreciate your advice, every bit of information counts!

 

[Alun_evans]

Good for you Rudge, quite an innovative way to approach the marketing aspect of the coffees you want to deal with.

You do not need to import a container load, in fact the import quantities are only dictated by the freight rates you would pay for smaller LCL loads.

PM me I can pass on more details as we too export coffee to the US.

Cheers, Alun

 

[montanosa]

Alun, can you help me as well. I tried to PM you but it said that your box is full and cannot receive new messages. Thank you!

 

[PinkRose]

Hello "montanosa"

Welcome to the Coffee Forums website.

Alun used to be a very active member on the Coffee Forums, but he's a very busy guy and he doesn't visit us as much as he used to. The last time he visited the Forums was in July of this year. It may take a while before you get a response from him.

Another option would to visit his website his website and contact him that way: Merdeka Coffee

Rose

 

[montanosa]

Thank you Rose for the guidance!

 

[CoffeeLovers]

You need further research in importing business. But before you venture on importing, you must learned first the coffee business in the USA, especially different roasting plants and their capacity and quantity of coffees they need. It is not good if you trust any agent if you are not acquainted well with coffee business. Also, you can gather some information in some reliable websites that give right information about importing coffee from Africa.

 

[CoffeeJunky]

I don't see people trying to import oil from anywhere but they all think they can make money importing coffee.... lol

 

[eldub]

It's easy to buy coffee. Selling it, well, that's another story.

 

[CoffeeJunky]

You can buy oil from Iran. I am sure. lol

 

[peterjschmidt]

It's easy to buy coffee. Selling it, well, that's another story.

You got that right, eldub. I do consulting/cupping for an importer of Indonesian coffees. One of the partners lives here in WI, and the other is from Sumatra w/ great connections to the farmers/co-ops/villages. They'll send me samples from certain sources, and let me roast/cup/review them, and if there's a thumbs up they'll bring in a container. Last year they averaged a container a month. But the kicker is, trying to develop relationships w/ enough roasters in the US to use up the volume they want to bring in. That's the bottleneck they're experiencing. So it's not just about bring decent beans into the country, montanosa, it's know where to go with it once it's here.

 

[Harperjones]

Peter,

What port do they import into? Also, do you know a ballpark per lb price to roasters for large quantities of premium Sumatran coffee? I only ask because I have no idea and I am curious about how it all works.

 

[peterjschmidt]

Peter,

What port do they import into? Also, do you know a ballpark per lb price to roasters for large quantities of premium Sumatran coffee? I only ask because I have no idea and I am curious about how it all works.

I know they use Continental in NJ, and then truck some to warehouse in WI, but I'm not sure whether or not they use the Annex in Oakland. I'd have to ask about the prices, which would depend on how large a quantity you're thinking of. They've been very competitive w/ other importers, and generally a bit lower. But their coffees aren't tied into the C market, so right now w/ the C being so low, they are basically not making much money if at all. If you have a specific need to know prices, etc., PM me, and we can go from there.

 

[CoffeeJunky]

Peter,

Do you import green beans?
I know of a person who represents Indonesian farmers who wants to export to US.(all Sumatra region)
If you could help him, I will give you his contact number or email addy.
He deals mainly with Kopi Luwak. He has access to about 5000 kg per year.
He speaks well and he does travel to US often.