Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeff Taylor.
Hi Jeff, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Jeff Taylor purchased Bird Rock Coffee Roasters from his friend and Bird Rock Coffee Roasters founder in 2017. But Bird Rock Coffee was not his first foray into coffee. Taylor founded his first coffee company in 1993 and after opening several cafes in Topeka, KS, and Kansas City, launched PT’s Coffee Roasting Co. in 1997.
By 1999 it was clear there were problems in the supply chain of coffee and finding quality coffee was very difficult. So, while working on the founding committees of the United States Barista Competition and the World Barista Competition, judging many national and international competitions, Taylor began exploring what was possible at coffee’s origins.
His goal soon became to help producers in the development of Micro-Lots and improving coffee cherry selection and processing so he could offer his customers around the United States a higher quality of coffee than was available at the time.
By 2008 Taylor had volunteered on the Roasters Guild Board, of the Specialty Coffee Association, and was on the Board of Directors of the SCAA. Now traveling and working with farmers and developing his own brand of Direct Trade, he was building lasting relationships with producers that would allow both PT’s Coffee and Bird Rock Coffee Roasters to secure exceptional product lines from at least 5 different countries in Latin America.
In 2009, PT’s Coffee became the 4th roaster in the United States to take home the coveted Roaster of the Year Award from ROAST Magazine. Bird Rock Coffee soon followed in 2012 with the award making Taylor and his partners the only two-time winners of the award.
Coffee excellence and his family are his twin passions. Taylor is married to Olivia “Maritza” Suarez-Taylor, Bird Rock Coffee’s Director of Quality Control and Queen of the Bean for both companies. They have a 9-year old son named Phoenix.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Oh my, not a smooth road.
First was starting in a small town that actually became a benefit as we slowly built a loyal following at PTs Coffee Roastinng Co. And that allowed us to survive and grow as a company. Eventually selling wholesale coffee in 35 states.
Eventually we wanted to open retail outside of topeka in a larger city. Washington DC was my target market, but that is when the Bird Rock Coffee founder, Chuck, called me and offered to sell to me. Said I was the only one he was asking. I trusted him and I hope he’s trusted me. But we bought Bird Rock in Feb. 2017. I had to sell half of our PTs business to some partners and took that money to buy Bird Rock Coffee. We have since expanded the business from 2 locations to ten locations. I always tell Chuck that he got all my money and I got all his stress. That’s when COVID hit.
After the initial shock of COVID wore off, I was approached by real estate agents looking to fill closed Starbucks locations and I saw opportunity in the crisis. So I borrowed as much money as I could and reinvested hoping the country recovered from COVID..
We have since grown as money allows. As many will agree construction has sky rocketed since 2021 so our growth has slowed. Can’t afford the cost to build anymore.
But we are always looking for opportunities to capitalize on the strengths in our company. We have a great team, The Best! And we do ll of our product from scratch. Coffees are sourced directly from country’s of origin and those farmers are celebrated. So given all of those strengths, I’m not afraid to expand. We have a very strong system in place and a team that believes in what we are doing.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Prior to opening my first coffee shop in 1993, I was an award winning photojournalist. Primary focus sports photography.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I love baseball!
We – BRCR – currently have a fund raiser with MLB baseball player Conner Joe to raise money for cancer research.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.birdrockcoffee.com
- Instagram: @birdrockcoffeeroasters
- Facebook: @birdrockcoffeeroasters
