In Between Meetings, Phil Robertson, co-founder of Phil & Sebastian Coffee Roasters, shares how an engineering mindset shaped the way he builds coffee systems from green coffee preservation to roasting precision to café execution. We dig into why “radical consistency” is the real product, why the hardest part is protecting the raw ingredient across global supply chains, and how freezing green coffee became the key to stable quality. Phil also breaks down the thinking behind building a custom 45kg roaster with an unusually wide batch-size range, what “direct trade done properly” looks like in real negotiations, and the culture lessons that come with scaling from one café to many.

Takeaways:

• Radical consistency is built through systems and discipline.
• The hardest part of coffee quality is the raw ingredient and the supply chain before roasting.
• Coffee is a living seed; preserving viability is a quality strategy.
• Freezing green coffee “locks in” consistency and reduces quality decay over time.
• Building a custom roaster was about rejecting artificial constraints.
• Direct trade is ongoing dialogue: cost of production, margins, and value for customers.
• Scaling culture is a daily discipline including hiring, clarity of values, and protecting the team dynamic.
• Early mistake: chasing perfection while sacrificing customer experience and empathy.
• Recovery and growth came from diversification, stronger leadership, and rebuilding the company better.

Phil Robertson is the co-founder of Phil & Sebastian Coffee Roasters in Calgary. Trained as an engineer, he applies systems thinking to sourcing, green coffee preservation, roasting, and café operations with a focus on consistency, quality, and long-term partnerships.

Between Meetings is a video podcast with industry leaders, startup founders, and ecosystem builders. Each episode explores the realities of building, investing, and supporting innovation while catching guests between meetings during a car ride across town. Along the way, they share inspiring stories, personal experiences, industry insights, and practical advice. Since 2023, Between Meetings has been helping tell Calgary’s innovation story one conversation at a time.

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