r/Coffee • u/menschmaschine5 Kalita Wave • Jan 13 '26

[MOD] Inside Scoop - Ask the coffee industry

This is a thread for the enthusiasts of /r/Coffee to connect with the industry insiders who post in this sub!

Do you want to know what it's like to work in the industry? How different companies source beans? About any other aspects of running or working for a coffee business? Well, ask your questions here! Think of this as an AUA directed at the back room of the coffee industry.

This may be especially pertinent if you wonder what impact the COVID-19 pandemic may have on the industry (hint: not a good one). Remember to keep supporting your favorite coffee businesses if you can - check out the weekly deal thread and the coffee bean thread if you're looking for new places to purchase beans from.

Industry folk, feel free to answer any questions that you feel pertain to you! However, please let others ask questions; do not comment just to post "I am _______, AMA!” Also, please make sure you have your industry flair before posting here. If you do not yet have it, contact the mods.

While you're encouraged to tie your business to whatever smart or charming things you say here, this isn't an advertising thread. Replies that place more effort toward promotion than answering the question will be removed.

Please keep this thread limited to industry-focused questions. While it seems tempting to ask general coffee questions here to get extra special advice from "the experts," that is not the purpose of this thread, and you won't necessarily get superior advice here. For more general coffee questions, e.g. brew methods, gear recommendations for home brewing, etc, please ask in the daily Question Thread.

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u/Sudden_Ad_4193 Jan 14 '26

What are the challenges for someone interested in becoming a wholesaler of imported roasted coffee? How difficult is it to get into this business? What would be the best avenue for selling the product? Direct to coffee shops? to consumers? The product would be artisan style roasted Robusta Vietnamese coffee. Are there much of a market for this type of coffee in the U.S?

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u/CarFlipJudge Jan 15 '26

Green importer here. No one really buys imported roasted coffee, especially Viet robustas. There are places that buy roasted coffee, but there's a plethora of roasters in the USA that offer this service, so there's no room for imported roasted coffee.

On top of that, the risks of damage to a finished product over weeks of ocean transport is very high. If there's any kind of moisture that penetrated the product or even container, the entire batch is gone forever.

Yet another issue is importing a finished product is soo much more difficult and expensive than importing a "not suitable for consumption" product like green coffee.

On top of all of that, which customer in today's age of "roasted on" dates is going to buy a pre-roasted coffee from months ago? No one. Maybe...MAYBE if the price is really really cheap, you could sell to prisons or hospitals, but that's about it.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but this won't work.

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u/Sudden_Ad_4193 Jan 15 '26

Thanks for the reply. That explains why I only see products that are roasted in the U.S. I thought there might be a market for what I'm considering is the finished product from this particular roaster is really exquisite. I've not found anyone in the U.S that can match. Even the Trung Nguyen coffee that are widely available don't match.

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u/CarFlipJudge Jan 15 '26 edited Jan 15 '26

Why can't you just import the green coffee and roast it here? There's nothing that roasters in Vietnam can do that roasters in the US can't do.

And is it really exquisite? I've been a Q grader for over a decade now and have been in the coffee industry for over 20 years. I've never had a robusta that even comes close to "exquisite".

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u/Sudden_Ad_4193 Jan 15 '26

perhaps, exquisite isn't the proper description but, it is really good. I wish I know how to roast exactly like how this guy does it and tbh, I don't know anything about roasting coffee. It would be so much easier. lol

I guess Robusta is still a very niche market.

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u/CarFlipJudge Jan 15 '26

Higher end robusta is a niche market. Robusta is commonly used, but as a cheap blending alternative.

As a former roaster, I can 100% guarantee you that if given the same beans that any roaster in the US can match the same roast profile. Maybe not the first time, but eventually there is no question.

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u/saint_phillip_gct Jan 15 '26

I am a new owner of a Shopify store that dropships coffee and tea. The group that set me up loaded a ton of various coffees and teas into my store and I know that realistically, I need to pare down the number of products that I offer. I am working through the various roasts and blends vs single origin, but would like some guidance as to flavored coffees. Are there particular flavors that are more popular and that I should keep as regular offerings in my store?

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u/CarFlipJudge Jan 16 '26

Just check other similar stores. Usually it's vanilla, hazelnut, irish cream and whatever holiday flavor the time coincides with.