About Brown Paper Coffee Company

ABOUT BROWN PAPER COFFEE COMPANY

My passion for great coffee and pastries began with a Swedish mother who was an avid baker and loved a steaming cup of the fragrant brew. In 1997, that passion grew into a mail-order gourmet coffee, biscotti, loose tea, specialty hot cocoa, and accessories company called Brown Paper Coffee Company – or BPCC – for short. After four years in business, we had to let it go. But here is the story for those who are interested.

A LITTLE HISTORY

The idea for Brown Paper Coffee Company (BPCC) was born on July 4th, 1997.

Jeff and I were leaving the fireworks display at Fort Vancouver, WA, with a carful of kids.

We didn’t have a name for it yet…but we had the first conversation. We dreamed of developing a network marketing business around an in-demand, consumable product. I have always been a passionate coffee lover, so I mentioned that it would be awesome to build a business around that product. What if we could teach people how to brew a delicious cup of coffee, rivaling Starbucks quality, in their own kitchens, at a fraction of the price?

And that was the seed.

Jeff already had a successful software development business, but he vowed to fund the endeavor and promised to work with me on creating profitable compensation and marketing plans.

I began researching potential suppliers and ordering whole-bean samples. We spent many nights, up into the wee hours of the morning, tasting varietals, discovering our favorites and those we didn’t like as much.

We finally zeroed in on our preferred supplier. Then we decided to expand our line to include gourmet hot chocolate and loose-leaf teas. We even added chocolate-covered espresso beans and handcrafted biscotti from an Italian baker in Pittsburgh.

I sourced quality grinders and Bodum French presses to include in our consultant kits. I even designed and hand-applied labels for our loose-leaf teas…which came in brown paper fold-top bags. Then, I cobbled together a website using my very basic HTML skills. Then, I wrote the text for our print brochure and consultant manual. Jeff designed the logo with input from me. We applied for a merchant account and filed for a business license with the state. Then, we got our Federal tax ID number.

I scheduled an appointment with a downtown Portland photographer and shopped for support materials for the food design photos. Jeff and I purchased new clothes, and I had my hair and nails freshly done. When everything was ready, we headed down for our photo session. Below are some of the pictures we took that day. I did all the layout and design for the food photos.

Starting that business in 1998 was a very costly experience. We had to purchase all our products in bulk and stock shelves with expensive inventory. We also purchased those French Presses and coffee grinders. Since the internet was still so new, our business was based on face-to-face in-home sales parties. So, there was an additional expense for the photography and print brochures.

NOT THE PROFITABILITY WE’D HOPED FOR

Over time, we learned that because coffee and tea are commodities, it was very difficult to price our products competitively and still leave enough to allow for commissions for our salespeople, while making the business profitable. So, ultimately, we had to close our doors.

I’m still very passionate about great coffee, chocolate, and the other products we offered with BPCC. And I’d love to hear about any particular types of coffee, tea, hot cocoa, biscotti, wine, or chocolate you love. I’ll do my best to make product recommendations!

In the meantime, CHECK OUT THIS AMAZING COFFEE WEIGHT-LOSS TIP

And if you enjoyed this post, then you’ll probably love this Kettle and Fire Bone Broth and Soup Review