Well-Bean Coffee's Founder Is Ready for Round 2 of the Startup Stage
In 2013, when we launched Well-Bean, we were most certainly a startup business. Who knew that 7 years later we'd be back with a new startup business idea, building again from the ground up? Switching from office coffee to e-commerce and coffee subscriptions that allow coffee delivery directly to your door has been quite a ride so far!
Melissa was so happy to share her story about being a woman owned business with Bizwomen and hopes her story will encourage other minority women owned business ideas to come to fruition!
Here's her story...
As we struggle with the long tail of Covid-19, many women look forward to a very different business experience in 2022. For Melissa Brown that means national distribution for the coffee she roasts in Raleigh, North Carolina.
"My parents moved to Nicaragua in 2007 to start a non-profit serving rural communities devastated by Hurricane Mitch. New Song Mission was doing amazing things through health, wellness & community-building initiatives. I tried to convince my husband, Jon, to let us move there, but life circumstances didn’t allow it. While touring a coffee farm on a visit in 2012, I saw how hard the farmers worked and how wonderful their coffee was. I had an idea. I’d import their coffee and donate a portion of the proceeds to New Song.
Little did I know my idea on the farm would throw my world upside down. After a failed coffee cart and an unsuccessful coffee drive-thru, we were out of money. My marriage and mental health were on the brink of failure. I left a 6-figure job, spent all my savings, and was now in debt. About the time the coffee drive-thru was out of business someone asked if I could deliver coffee beans to their office. That’s when it hit me. There were no coffee roasters in the area focusing on "office coffee.” So, I went to Jon and said I wanted to start a coffee roastery.
Oh, and in case you're wondering where you can find Well-Bean's Hot Mess, it's right here!
Leave a comment