Building a Business, Part 1

Why I Decided To Leave Finance and Start a Coffee Business

A love story

“How would you like your coffee prepared?” the barista asks me, and I wish I could see my own blank face. I don’t have a clue on how to answer that.

Believe it or not, that question and the exchange that followed — seven years ago — changed my life. I left my comfortable job in Finance and jumped into the coffee world.

Friends and family would describe me as an avid sports fan, a curious person passionate about his hobbies. Very few would have labeled me as someone interested in coffee or even a coffee drinker before my journey into my own coffee business.

They were correct. Before starting my business, I drank coffee once in a blue moon, primarily as a social lubricant. I really did not think about it very much beyond that.

The Coffee Date

This all changed when I met someone who, in contrast to me, was a spirited coffee drinker—someone who drinks at least two cups a day. Coffee is the fuel of her life.

I had a challenge. I, the non-coffee drinker, would need to go full research mode to impress her. Fortunately, my appetite for curiosity was conducive for me to find a solution. So began the search for the best place to go for coffee. I spent many days looking at review websites, foodie, and coffee blogs and found the best Coffee shop in Miami: Panther Coffee.

Ironically, when we finally went to the shop, she did not order coffee. She decided to order tea.

“Oh no!” I said to myself, what have I done wrong?

What was the reason? Well, it was at night, and she did not drink coffee after 4 PM.

“Ahh, that makes sense,” I said to her. Although the answer may be evident to most, I had not considered it. I, again, was a non-coffee drinker.

Fortunately, I asked for a cup of coffee and was asked questions that I had never considered before — the first one being, you guessed it, how I would like my coffee prepared.

After confessing my ignorance on the matter, the barista was — lucky for me — quick to react and offered suggestions.

“We can brew the coffee in a Chemex, V60, Aeropress, Clever, or Siphon. Each of these methods brings out different flavor profiles. Is there one you are particularly interested in?” the barista said.

“Clever!” I said to the barista, not having an idea of what that meant, but I imagined it could be good because the method’s name was fun.

I was happy and looking forward to my drink, and then the barista asked a follow-up question “Which origin would you like your coffee from?”. The barista got another blank stare from me; I was lost. This time around, I asked for options and decided to choose a coffee from my home country, Nicaragua, specifically from Finca La Amistad.

As a (specialty) coffee newbie, I had no idea what to expect and was eager to learn more about the process of brewing each cup of coffee manually. I asked the barista multiple questions about the process and why it mattered. The resulting cup was delicious. For the first time in my life, I enjoyed the drink and could taste the difference. The coffee was so good that it did not need sugar or milk. I can taste subtle notes of apricot; it was light and had a smooth finish.

Months after that coffee date in Panther Coffee, I would find myself deep down the specialty coffee rabbit hole. I looked at old Barista Competitions on YouTube, watching Livestreams of Competitions, tuning into Creative Morning Events about specialty coffee, reading brewing blogs such as Daily Coffee News, Sprudge, Barista Hustle, and so much more.

A new passion is ignited.

Serendipitously, I found a new passion for coffee at around the same time I was no longer feeling challenged or motivated in my current day-to-day job in Finance. Put simply; I was looking for a purpose-driven job.

Six months after the coffee date, around May 2014, I told my manager that I would be resigning to start my own business.

My colleagues could be best described as perplexed when I told them I was going into coffee; they didn’t think of me as a coffee person. At the same time, they were excited about my next phase and offered a helping hand.

My family was supportive of the decision, albeit a bit hesitant on the sudden change of career. They were particularly curious about how and why I moved from corporate life to a small business owner and the reason. Was it burnout? Bad management? Lack of growth?

It was none of the above. I enjoyed working in Finance. However, I wanted to build something from scratch, and that also intrinsically motivated me to improve every day. And it had to have a clear purpose.

I had found a purpose in starting a Coffee Business, and it was to elevate the people around the industry that are usually not in the spotlight: the farmers, the roasters, the baristas. At that time, a standard order for a cup of coffee could be best characterized as a sugary drink with a slight coffee flavor, and the most prominent names associated would be Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, or Nespresso.

The next phase in my life

I wanted to start a different type of coffee business, which had a deeper connection to the origin of coffee. I named it Know Where Coffee.

The name was intentional. I wanted it to serve as a constant reminder to value where the coffee came from and ensure we put in the effort that those in the coffee production chain did.

In hindsight, I decided to start a coffee business because of that person for which I excitedly researched coffee. She’s the one that motivated me to find ways to improve and provide a great coffee experience, much like the one we had.

She was my friend, then became my girlfriend and eventual partner in the business, and one week before opening, we got engaged (inside the under-construction shop). We now have been happily married for over five years and are parents to a two-year-old baby boy.

There you have it. That’s how a coffee date became the beginning of my enthusiasm for coffee and how it led me to marry the love of my life.

Thank you, coffee! ☕️

What’s next

In part 2, I share with you the founding principles that guided my coffee business. And in subsequent articles, I will discuss what we did right, where we needed improvement, and where we are today.

Special thanks to Amber Williams, Ryan Williams, Adam Thomas, Ergest Xheblati, Steven Ovadia, Jason Nguyen, Chris Angelis from Compound Writing for the feedback.