“Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
I love black coffee; the drink and the song by Black Flag. I also love Black Magic Cold Brew Coffee and the song by Slayer. Come to think of it, I also love red hot chili peppers; the food and the band. Wait, I’m seeing a pattern, are you? Maybe I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me step back a bit…
My love for coffee started at a very young age. My family has always been big coffee people. My earliest memory drinking coffee is at my grandma’s house in Willow Glen. Probably because it made me feel so special and grown up. She served me a small amount in a fancy cup and saucer, pretty special, right? I know, what a big boy! I drink coffee like the grownups!
Truth be told, it was more milk than coffee. Coffee flavored milk, actually. Little did I know that what she served me was a real drink. A Spanish drink called a Café Manchado, which is a glass of milk flavored with a bit of coffee.
Whatever the ratio, it started a love for coffee that only grew over time. Fast forward to my early twenties – remember that first start up I discussed earlier in the series? You know the one that we jumped in a bit too early and a bit unprepared? That business was fueled almost solely by caffeine, and lots of it.
For me, a quad iced espresso – about four to five a day. Yes, you read that right, four to five quadruple espressos a day. A gutter junky had nothing on me.
Where was the easiest place to acquire these back then? You bet, Starbucks. At about $4 a pop, that just might be where the major business loss came from, if only there was a line for it on the P&L, I might have caught it earlier. Okay, I jest, but a $20/day coffee habit isn’t very feasible when launching a self-funded startup.
Summer or winter, that quad iced espresso was my drink. Now it didn’t start that way. It actually evolved from an iced quad latte. They, the baristas, never quite got ratio of milk to espresso that I like correct. Well, except for a few, but they didn’t work 24/7. I’m a real big boy now and I don’t like Cafe Manchados anymore. I like to taste my coffee. I like bold, strong flavored coffee. Probably a result from growing up with parents who drank strong French Roast.
Moving ahead again, my coffee habit is costing way too much at this point, and the first business is losing money faster than I can drink it so it was time to budget. The first start up is on the way out and cold brew coffee is barely surfacing; it’s not even a thing yet. Most people just brew regular coffee and chill it or pour it over ice. YUK! I’m tired of poor tasting, bitter, acidic iced coffee.
So…
I start making my own for personal consumption. So here begins a period of research and development; the thing that was missing from the first start up. And, this wasn’t even a business…yet. After what seemed like an endless series of experimenting, testing, and tweaking – Viola! I cracked the code and came up with my very own formula and process for my own cold brewed coffee. And it was delicious! A new hobby is born.
Oh yeah, and about those red hot chili peppers…
I attribute my love for spicy food to two main sources; my dad and life-long friend, Jason, AKA “Big J” – my brother from another mother.
Long story short, I started making a chile rojo that was spicy and super tasty! Friends and family started raving about both the coffee and sauce. Every time people were over they would ask for some of that cold coffee. If we were having a meal they wanted some hot sauce. And then it started…Remember the quotes I left off with in my previous article? Everyone was basically saying a variations of…”You should bottle this, I’d buy it”
So, you guessed it…I jumped in the fire and started a small food and beverage business; ColdFire Coffee. You just can’t quell the entrepreneurial spirit in me. It was actually an easy decision because we had technically already started the business. We had filed all the paperwork and received our sellers permit. The original plan was to start with mobile vending and start by servicing the outdoor markets and other events. The reality was, there were just too many regulations and red tape to pass through to make it happen. In addition, we were both busy with Go-Go Babyz and raising soccer and karate kids. There was simply no time on the weekends left to run a business servicing events that took place at the same time as all the extracurricular activities.
But when the tie was right, the first product we released was Black Magic Cold Brew. It was straight up black coffee that makes the hair on your neck stand up. Strong, bold, delicious.
Product number two was my chile rojo . It was originally called California Red, and then evolved into Voodoo Chile but do to branding conflict it is now known as Voodoo Fire. It was inspired by the Jimi Hendrix song and it just fit since it’s a chile, not a salsa. Is the pattern becoming clearer?
There will be much more to come about the ColdFire business, but for this article, here’s the point; this is start up number three. The first failed miserably. The second is still going today. It has had its fair share of ups and downs but is still breathing. Both provided invaluable lessons. Some costly, some not but all providing the experience needed make me stronger and better at what I do.
They say the 3rd time’s a charm. The verdict is still out so we will see what happens. I was much more cautious with this one, having learned from my past failures. I took it slow and built a nice following. It’s been a great little side hustle, staying cash flow positive. Not huge in flows, but it’s one of my passions, so worth it nonetheless.
As I mentioned, I will discuss this more later because it is alive and well. It’s been somewhat idle during most of our transition to Idaho, but if you have been following me on the gram or the book, you know the business recently acquired another that we are using to launch the ColdFire brand on a grander scale. Let’ see if the lessons from all the previous business ventures pay off. This acquisition makes it business number nine. Hmmm…3×3 or 3 squared. Does that mean the ninth time is a triple lucky charm? Follow me so you can find out, and stay tuned for the final part of this series where I bring it all together.
Talk Soon,
Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator
You have to leap if you want to live
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