Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Holly Kent-Payne, co-owner of Thread Coffee Roasters, located in Baltimore, MD, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We are a specialty coffee roaster in Baltimore, transparently sourcing organic and fair trade coffee from producers we stand in solidarity with. We're a worker coop with an emphasis on women and queer ownership and a mission to uplift the most marginalized people in the coffee supply chain. Coffee is a vast and thriving global industry, but so many of the most vital people that bring you your daily cup, from farmers to baristas, still struggle to make ends meet. By sourcing from producer coop, doing important work around sustainability and community at origin, and creating well-paying jobs with dignity for coffee professionals here in Baltimore, we are doing our part to level the playing field. When you buy a bag of coffee from us, you're not only getting high-quality, carefully roasted beans. You're investing in a vision for the future of coffee: beyond fair trade to equity, dignity, transparency, and empowerment for all.
Tell us about yourself
I wasn't making ends meet as an adjunct teacher, so I took a part-time barista job and worked my way up from second to third wave (specialty) coffee shops. Learning the intricacies of brewing science and espresso extraction and attempting to pour hearts in a cup thousands of times, I realized that coffee is truly a craft and an art form of deep complexity.
The more time I spent behind the bar perfecting my shots and pours, the more I wanted to step back behind the scenes into roasting and production and understand everything that happens to the coffee before it ends up in a cafe. However, roasting jobs are very competitive. It can be difficult to gain experience, especially as a woman in the industry.
Joining Thread Coffee Roasters in 2018 gave me unprecedented access to skills and training in roasting, green buying, and of course, business ownership. Being a worker-owner has its challenges, but I'm motivated to ensure Thread can continue to provide other coffee professionals with the training, resources, and career growth I have benefited so much from.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My accomplishments are shared with the other owners of Thread. We have achieved so much more together than we ever could have alone. I think being named as a finalist for Roaster of the Year 2021 by Roaster Magazine was one of my proudest moments so far!
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The hardest thing is that you have no choice but to take work home with you and carry it around in your mind wherever you go. You may work set hours, but you're always on call, and work takes up a lot of space in your life because you're deeply invested in it. It's very different from all the previous jobs I've had where my responsibility ended when I clocked out of my shift.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Have a team you trust and can communicate effectively with. Interpersonal problems can easily derail your efforts.
- Find a niche you fit into, and don't try to water down your brand for mass appeal.
- Don't spread yourself too thin or try to do too many things at once. I have seen a lot of businesses fall apart because they tried to grow too fast or reach too far.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.threadcoffee.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThreadCoffee/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/threadcoffee/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.