Your Opinion: Best Wholesale Green Coffee Providers?

[kifucoffeeroaster]

Hi,

I'm preparing to turn my small business as a home roaster (to individuals) into a bigger small business as a home roaster (to retailers). I'm getting ready to get an Ambex YM-10 and built myself a coffee roasting building (i.e., man-cave).

Anyway, I've been buying my beans from Sweet Maria's, primarily because of their quality as well as their ethics. However, I doubt I will be able to rely solely on SM as I expand.

I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the best wholesale coffee providers in terms of both (1) quality and (2) ethics (i.e., offer some sort of fair trade coffees [SM's is Farm Gate]).

Thanks in advance!

KCR

 

[acidwashed]

I just made the same jump within the last year. I bought a Diedrich IR-3 from these very boards! It's a big jump and highly worth while if you pay attention to the details.

In my opinion, getting beans from SM is not going to cut it if you want to get any margin on your product. I found a local roaster who was willing to give me 20% off his greens at first (5 lb increments). When I started buying 25 lbs at a time, he gave me an even better price. At a certain point, I was taxing his inventory too much and he backed out but by that time, I had accumulated enough business to order straight from Cafe Imports. Our markets were different enough that it was a mutually beneficial endeavor for a while.

SM has a wholesale service called Coffee Shrub. Google it and you'll find the details. Or, like me, you can go through one of the reputable importers (Cafe Imports, Royal Coffee, Zephyr, Atlas, etc) Some will sell less than whole bags, some will not. If you find one within a couple of hours drive, even with gas prices, it may be worth it to pick the beans up if at all possible because shipping pallets is not cheap. You'll need to get at least a few hundred pounds of green to make it worth your while and from what I gather, the days of cheap beans are gone..

There really are a million things to think about though. Like WHEN the health department catches on to your gig and how to handle that, how to bag it and make it look good on the shelf, getting people to actually buy your product, etc...the list goes on and on. I think though that if you have a plan, good beans, roasting experience and some people skills, you can make it work. All of the importers will let you have/buy samples to roast and they should have FTO and such...or you can find a local guy to supply beans for a while, see who supplies them, and start there. Then you can expand your offerings as needed.

Hope that helped...and that you don't live in my neighborhood! Ha, just kidding

 

[kifucoffeeroaster]

Thanks, Acidwashed!

I've been purchasing beans from CoffeeShrub for well over a year now (since it's inception--though, sometimes the deals are no better when you compare buying even the 60 lb. bags with the SM shipping special [$8.99 for 20 lb bags]). I have had a pretty good customer base for the past three years, but when I begin selling to retailers I'm going to send them to the local shops (a key incentive for shops to take me on . Since I posted this, I've looked into Cafe Imports and they seem pretty good. I've gotten quite a few beans from Royal NY through the GCBC and have not been disappointed.

Anyway, I'm still looking for a roaster. I wanted to go with Ambex but they won't return my calls/emails. So weird--is it impossible to get them to sell you a roaster!?!?!

One more question: Did you approach the health dept. or did they approach you? Was it a big deal?

Thanks!

KCR

 

[LovingCoffee]

Hi,
I have tried the Cafe Amore green coffee beans from El Salvador and it's delicious!! I bought it at CoffeeBuyer and their price is fair. Perhaps you could check their website. I didn't find any other green beans there at the time of my shopping but the one I tried was certainly one of the best ones I tried so far :razz:

I hope this is useful.
Good luck!;-)

 

[acidwashed]

No contact with the lovely .gov types yet...I was just saying that it's bound to happen at some point. I guess I'd rather beg forgiveness than ask permission.

I sell to some retailers but still prefer to sell to my regular customers face to face. Hell, I actually deliver to most people just to keep the customer service skills up. Your margin will get hit if you send your customers to another venue to purchase what you've been selling them at a higher price and you may lose some business from that. Your customers will be paying more for the same product and unless you stand to gain that much more business, I'd be careful. Keeping the core group happy is tough and well worth the effort. They are your best vehicle for gaining new clients and getting the word out. I approached my retailers with nothing but good packaging and excellent quality roasts and let them decide. I keep my local friends/customers within reach at all times and my increase in business over the last year (with not a lot of effort mind you) has been nice.

 

[acidwashed]

On the side, you might check with USRC for a good new or used roaster. I hear that their machines are solid as a rock and they do get some used ones in from time to time. When I've used all the good roasting up from my IR-3, that's where I'm headed.
usroastercorp.com

 

[pbmac]

We have had wonderful success working with Cafe Imports in Minneapolis...they are great people, and truly have a heart for those who grow the coffee and those who work in the field harvesting and preparing this wonderful drink we enjoy.

I suggest you contact them or at least visit their website: Cafe Imports - Importers of Fine Specialty Green Coffee

Good luck with your venture...it has been a wonderful ride for us

Pat McClanahan
Covenant Roasters

 

[kifucoffeeroaster]

From this post and a few conversations I've recently had, I'll definitely be looking into Cafe Imports. It sounds like they've got the right perspective on the coffee industry. Thanks for all the responses!

KCR

 

[BrasilCafeImporters]

Green Coffee Beans Wholesale

Dear KRC, at the present time, we can spot a one jute bag of premium grade Brazilian gourmet arabica green beans for $2.57 / lbs. Each bag weighs 60 kgs/ 132.27 lbs. Our farm is located in the Machado region, south of Minas Gerais. Our inventory :coffeemug::coffeemug: is located in Miami, Florida USA. Please PM me at your earliest convenience.


https://brasilcafeimports.wordpress.com/

 

[Hebrewscoffee]

I, and many others have been using Bodhi Leaf Coffee Traders in Orange, Ca. Steve Sims is the owner. They just opened a warehouse in the Chicago area as well under the name Red Beard Coffee. Absolutely the best customer service around. All the people there are first class and will take care of all your needs. They also sell to home roasters and have all the home roasting equipment for those of you wanting to step up your game. They offer specials each week on quality green that is heavily discounted. You can check their facility out on U-tube or just go to their website.
Have fun!