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Costa Rican Tarrazu La Pastora Coffee - 12 oz.
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Or, “Why you need a Mentor”
When we opened our retail coffee shop in 2004, we had no idea what we were doing. We were missionaries for goodness sake. I could land a Cessna 185 into a 1200 foot muddy airstirp all day long. Trish could haggle with Ecuadorian butchers for fresh meat, pasteurize milk from the cow and arrange accommodations for a visiting work team of twenty five US supporters.
But run a retail business? After all we had been out of the business world since 1990 and out of the US serving with MAF since 1994. However having moved back into the US culture in 2002, with kids approaching college age and the higher cost of living here, a second income was needed. [Read more…] about The Number One Reason Some Coffee Shops Struggle
Let Coffee 4 Missions create a unique and beautifully designed custom labeled fundraising campaign with your choice of coffee, whole bean or ground. We will infrared craft roast your order, bag and label it, then box and ship it anywhere in the Continental US. All you have to do is create a great marketing campaign and the rest is a successful memory!
Each Fundraiser Coffee order is for 100, 8 ounce bags. Each bag has a recommended sale price of $9-12. Of course the sale price is ultimately up to you, but these prices are based on what others have found works best to move the coffee quickly.
LOTS OF OPTIONS! HERE’S HOW TOOMER’S COFFEE FUNDRAISER PLAN WORKS
You would like our in house graphics artist to produce it.
NOTE: CUSTOM DESIGN ~ We will follow up with parameters for your graphics person or to explain what we need to if you would prefer for us to produce your label. There is NO CHARGE for our label design service.
NOTE: BAG COLOR ~ We may also suggest a bag color depending on your label color scheme. But we will call you and discuss that first.
That’s really about it. Once we get your order we will contact you straight away to sort out the label and bag color options if needed then get right on your order.
We have sold many thousands of bags for Fundraiser Coffee campaigns all across the US and we know you will be pleased with the quality of your coffee and the excellent service.
Thank you shopping here in our great country and for trusting our family owned enterprise with your Coffee Fundraiser campaign!
Starting or setting up a church run coffee shop or café is becoming standard fare in today’s churches across America. Why is that?
First consider the fact that coffee is the most highly consumed beverage on the planet next to water. Second, it is universally accepted (unlike beer or wine) within the Christian community. Finally, let’s not forget the sense of community and fellowship it generates as people hold a warm cup and have their spirits lifted in fellowship with one another.
Bottom line: Coffee shops foster positive energy and atmosphere. And that’s a good thing today! We could all use a bit more of that. Right?
It’s the missionary in us, but our heart is to see churches get outside of their four walls and reach the unbelieving world in a compelling, contemporary, manner with the consistent message of Christ’s love, grace and forgiveness. The coffee shop is one of the means.
Sandy Toomer / Co-Founder Coffee 4 Missions
We have been in this business since 2004 and have helped any number of churches and shops set up their cafés. Obviously we would like you to do business with Coffee 4 Missions, but we would also like to make sure you do it right.
Here’s another media tool to listen to to help you get a feel for this subject:
Sandy Toomer talks about the two basic Church Café options: in your Church or in your Community | |
Consider Levering our Success Through Our Consulting Service
You may want to consider our one-on-one Consulting Service where work travel to you for an affordable fee and sit down with your Church Leadership and their Staff. This has proven to be extremely beneficial to any number of congregations across the US.
That being said, consider this very basic HOW TO GUIDE, a value-added gift to give you some idea of where we are coming from. Keep in mind this is just the tip to the iceberg information. But it is a starting point to get you thinking before we sit down together.
Through our Consulting Service we will help you answer these questions one-on_one formally and in depth.
Included as part of our in-house consultation service, is our purposely written handbook that covers such as equipment lists, typical layouts & design as well as sample business plans geared specifically for coffee shops.
We figure you will start to see how we operate and see our hearts for ministry and missions then continue on with us as your coffee roaster and supplier as you look to open your church coffee shop or café.
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Let’s begin…
The most important question you absolutely have to answer is: Will we charge for our coffee or give it away?
There isn’t a correct answer here. It’s unique to your congregation’s needs, the goals of the café, and possibly your congregational view about conducting a selling environment within the four walls of the church. There is no one right answer. So think about this and get everyone on board whatever model you choose.
CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO THE PROFIT MODEL:
FACT: The day when you can open a for-profit coffee shop and sell mediocre coffee or just grocery store grade coffees are gone. People no longer visit coffee shops out of curiosity, innocent of what to expect. You have a very educated coffee shop clientele out there today.
CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO THE NON-PROFIT MODEL:
FACT: Our experience has been that churches who have switched to our coffee even in the FREE COFFEE MODEL [from hotel or food service grade coffee] immediately notice how few half empty cups they have to pick up and collect after Sunday services and how little un-used coffee is dumped out. In fact their coffee consumption actually goes up some. But when you weigh that against what was thrown away and dumped out before, it’s probably a wash.
The next thing to consider is the build out: The #1 mistake most new coffee shops make is over-spending on the build out.
Coffee shops use a lot of the same items found in a restaurant like ice makers, 3 compartment sinks, under counter refrigerators, blenders and so on.
When you can it is advisable to buy USED. Good, used commercial grade equipment holds up well over time. Used can be a few months old or a few years old, but the pricing will be all the about same. Expect to pay about 20-30% of new price for good used equipment. We can guide you on this and have one broker we like to deal with who is a Christian businessman. Whether from him or another source we can often find you what you need for the fairest/best price based on quality. In the end: We know what we are looking at and what it’s really worth. We’re a great resource.
We have a long list of items we recommend to our clients to buy used and a rough guestimate of prices for planning purposes. This is part of our Consulting Service.
However, we generally do not recommend buying espresso machines used. There are several reasons.
When you buy a used unit, sitting in a warehouse, or someone’s garage, you have no idea if any of this has occurred (even if it is a name brand we would recommend).
Finally sell good quality products.
This probably should be number one.
I say that because I am thinking of instances where shops were properly capitalized, used good equipment, but chose to go with downright cheap coffee and/or other products. They are all out of business now.
For example, we actually saw one local owner loading a cart at the local “Big Box Membership Store” with their store brand of coffee. Yet he was still charging for artisan grade coffees. This didn’t fool their clientele for long. They can get that at the gas station for 50 cents.
Our coffees, many direct trade, are sourced from the best regions through the most reputable agencies and roasted to bring out their full flavor and goodness. We use the infrared roasting method which is superior to all other methods. Couple the two characteristics together and you have a winning combination that will keep clients returning again and again and keep you profitable.
Contact us today to help you get started
We have many years of experience, industry knowledge and a network of suppliers that can offer you the best pricing for whatever your needs are.
Mary Lou Herald, Food Service Director at Whitesburg Baptist Church says this about us:
We opened our Café 246 coffee shop last year and wanted a high quality coffee at a reasonable price but also a coffee company with a higher purpose and ideals than simply us selling coffee. What a tall order!
We found everything we were looking for and more in Coffee 4 Missions and Toomer’s Coffee Roasters.
It is outstanding coffee; our people love it and purchase bags to enjoy at home. The company/people are of the highest caliber, honest, and dependable; they will do whatever it takes to be sure we have what we need when we need it.
What I appreciate most is the help they gave us prior to opening our coffee service – they helped with design and layout, equipment procurement, lots of encouragement, training of our staff, and were on-site the day we opened!
You cannot go wrong purchasing coffee from this outstanding company- you will receive great coffee at a reasonable price and have a good feeling knowing you are helping to support missions… one cup at a time.”
We look forward to hearing from you soon!
God’s blessings!
Sandy & Trish