Roosevelt and Rose: The Z Beans Coffee Roasters

"Carter, I have an incredible idea. But, I need you to tell me that you're in before I tell you what we are going to do." 

"What are we doing?"

"Just tell me you're in." 

"Alright. I'm in." 

... 

It's 6:00pm, Monday - December 31, 2018, and I'm leaving Bainbridge, Georgia, heading to Panama City Beach. I have an hour and a half car ride ahead of me, so I decide to learn more about our upcoming investment: The Diedrich IR-12.

Over the last 8 months, I've been researching the different types of coffee roasters. But, over the past 2 months, I've been set on purchasing the Diedrich - repair parts are very accessible, their customer service is second to none, and it's an infrared burner instead of an open flame. 

Sold, I plan on placing the down deposit for a brand new machine on Wednesday. It's a forgone conclusion. We will have a coffee roaster by the middle of March. 

..

We are five minutes into the car ride.

'Diedrich IR-12' - I type that into Google.

The Diedrich website pops up first. I begin to click it when I see an EBAY Link: 

Diedrich IR-12 Roaster and 7lb Primo for sale

I click it. 

It's half the price of what I was going to pay. 

I check the location - Los Angeles, California. 

I email the seller, making him a fair offer. I ask, "Can you ship it?" 

..

A day later, 1/1/19 - "That's a fair deal, but I didn't include shipping in the price."

I need to talk to him on the phone, but EBAY won't show me his contact information. However, craigslist will.

Craigslist - Los Angeles, California - Diedrich IR-12 Roaster

There it is. The same roaster. The same ad. The same seller. But this time, I get his contact information.

..

I call the seller, Mitch Hale - the founder of Cafecito Organico, and leave him a message. I also send him a text. He responds, but he doesn't seem too interested in dealing with the logistics of shipping the 2,500 pounds worth of machines.

I can't allow this opportunity to pass.

. 

I look up the cost of flights to California. $400 per ticket. 

I look up the cost to rent a truck from Los Angeles to Macon, GA. $2500.

In total it would cost (for two people): $3300 without the cost of gas

That's far too expensive. There has to be a better way. 

.

I call Penske rental truck. 

What would it cost me to rent a truck in Macon, drive to California, come back, and return the truck all within 6 days? 

$80 per day and $.22 per mile: $1,492

That's it. 

. 

Immediately, I call Carter. 

"Carter, I have an incredible idea. But, I need you to tell me that you're in before I tell you what we are going to do." 

"What are we doing?"

"Just tell me you're in." 

"Alright. I'm in." 

"We are leaving for California on Wednesday, driving there to pick up two coffee roasters, and we will be back by Sunday afternoon." 

"Really?"

"Yes. We are leaving Wednesday at 3:30pm."

______________________________________________________

It's Wednesday. Carter gets back from his New Years trip to Miami at 12pm. We take care of a few errands and pick up the Penske truck at 3:30. 

For the next 37 hours, we drive. 

We arrive in Los Angeles at 10am Friday morning. We meet Mitch Hale and his team at their facility. We spend a couple of hours with them - getting to know their story and learning about their business. Before leaving, Leo, Mitch's roast master, said his final goodbye to the roaster. It was touching to see just how much he cared about the machine. 

We assured Leo that we will take good care of it and that we will always stay in touch. As Mitch said before we left, "As one chapter comes to an end - another begins." 

We plan on partnering with Mitch and his company in the near future, as Mitch is very interested in trying our Ecuadorian coffee. He imports coffee out of Honduras and Guatemala, but he mentioned that he has never had the opportunity to try any Ecuadorian. So, we are sending some his way, in hopes of establishing a symbiotic partnership for years to come!

________________________________________________________

At 2pm on Friday, Carter and I leave. As we did the entire way to LA, one drove while the other slept. It wasn't the most comfortable cab to sleep in, but when you're tired enough - even the hardest of seats is comfortable. 

Another 35 hours later, Carter and I returned to Macon. This time with two coffee roasters. One Diedrich IR-12 and one 7lb Primo. 

The Diedrich will be named Roosevelt. 

The 7lb Primo will be named Rose. 

Why?

Well, you should never forget where you started: Rosie.