A North Shore Shift Into Winter
This morning it seems like summer is trying to still hold on up here on the Shore. We definitely have had our soft but serious teases from winter that's coming. But today the sun is shining, no clouds to speak of and there is just a warmth in the air.
Who knows when you read this, it could be grey, cold and wet outside.
Either way we are transitioning into a new winter season here and we also are approaching the Holiday Season as well. Bet you never guess who was the first to play Christmas music in our household, it was my teenage son!
Roastery Move: Sneak Peeks & Big Progress
Also over the next few weeks of what will be our busiest time of the year for online sales, we also will be moving our roaster into the new building. So I want you to come along the next couple weeks and get some sneak peeks into the finishing details taking place.
We have round third base and are sprinting towards home and hoping to slide head first into home base sometime in the first half of December! Currently this week Woody and Geoff are building the last big feature in the roastery: the kinetic wall that separates the production space to the lab area. The dirt work outside is getting wrapped up as well and it looks so nice and clean.
Coffee Market Update
A quick market reflection: I'm sure you have noticed the price of our coffee has gone up —as have coffee prices everywhere, even in supermarkets. We have had tariffs on coffee which was new this year, and then if you follow coffee on the market it has been abosley manic. With that background I have had this reflection from conversations I have had and a podcast I have listened to too.
What “Specialty Coffee” Really Means
Fika Coffee is a specialty coffee roaster, meaning we are going to pay more for our raw product because we have values of quality. Quality of how the coffee is grown and processed. Quality in the inherent flavor and character of each coffee, we want tasty coffee and then quality in relationships that we source coffee from. We look to build lasting and personal relationships with our partners along the supply chain. So all of those things are going to lead to a higher quality and higher price coffee, but one that will taste good and one that we as the roasters and you as the consumer can feel good about.
The Challenge of Wholesale Coffee
So with this understanding, we also are in the business of sales. Doing wholesale is a very difficult task, especially when you have a larger market you are trying to sell coffee in. It's extremely difficult to sell "specialty coffee" in a grocery store or coop, because their margins are tight and complicated and you are sharing shelf space with other coffee products that may be spicality but most often only might present themselves as specialty but actually are very commercial in nature. And that is hard to sell a "specialty product" right next to a "commercial product", understandably so the shopper is going to save money where they can.
Coffee: A Luxury and an Everyday Ritual
A second thought is the dichotomy of the fact that "specialty coffee" is a luxury product and an everyday product. Coffee may in fact still might just be the most affordable luxury product and experience a person can have. But it's also simply a morning tradition. The majority of us just want our morning coffee and not to think much about it first thing in the morning. So therein lies the complexity of a specialty coffee roaster that wants to do good for all parties involved.
So move over cake...
you can't have your coffee and drink it too.
Or can you?
Looking Ahead
We look forward to sharing the next several weeks with you as we get ready for a new, exciting chapter in Fika's story—and as we continue to navigate the new and daunting challenges within the global coffee market.
Let’s move forward together as a community rooted in what we value, creatively navigating the adventure ahead.
Here’s to moving coffee forward!
