Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea

Overview

Crimson Cup was founded in May 1991 by 23-year-old Greg Ubert, a recent Harvard graduate who quit a software-engineering job in Chicago after one year to roast coffee in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio — naming the company for the ripe red coffee cherry and Harvard's official color. The company built its growth around Ubert's 2003 book 'Seven Steps to Success: A Common Sense Guide to Succeed in Specialty Coffee' and an associated 'coffee franchise alternative' program that has helped over 300 independent coffee shops launch across 30+ states; Crimson Cup itself was named Roast Magazine's 2016 Macro Roaster of the Year and now imports roughly 500,000 pounds of coffee annually from 25+ origins.

Known for

• Roast Magazine 2016 Macro Roaster of the Year
• Greg Ubert's 'Seven Steps to Success' book (2003) — coffee-shop launch program
• Helped open 300+ independent coffee shops across 30+ U.S. states
• Friend2Farmer direct-trade program in 8 producing countries
• Armando's Blend — flagship espresso/latte/drip versatility

Why it matters

Crimson Cup is the coffee industry's most prolific independent-shop incubator — the company's franchise-alternative program has launched more independently-owned cafes than most franchise systems, and its model demonstrates how a wholesale roaster can scale via teaching rather than equity ownership of its accounts.

Production

destoning

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head roaster

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color sorting

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roaster machine

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filter equipment

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cupping frequency

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roastery location

1925 Alum Creek Drive, Columbus, OH 43207

espresso equipment

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annual volume tonnes

227

Café

Clintonville and Upper Arlington (Columbus suburbs); flagship retail store

Recognitions

• Roast Magazine Macro Roaster of the Year (2016)
• Good Food Awards (2017, 2020)
• Smart 50 Award (Greg Ubert)
• Golden Bean North America medals
• U.S. Chamber Dream Big Award regional finalist

Sources

• https://www.crimsoncup.com/about/story
• https://www.crimsoncup.com/about-us
• https://www.crimsoncup.com/about/media
• https://www.crimsoncup.com/crimson-cup-founder-and-president-greg-ubert
• https://www.startupgrind.com/events/details/startup-grind-columbus-presents-greg-ubert-crimsoncup/
• https://www.comunicaffe.com/crimson-cups-greg-ubert-talks-30-years-of-us-cafe-culture-on-newsmakers-podcast/