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.