Grand Rapids · United States
Madcap Coffee Company
Madcap Coffee Company roasts in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Since 2008 · Trevor Corlett, Ryan Knapp
Overview
Madcap was founded in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 2008 by Trevor Corlett and Ryan Knapp, after Corlett's earlier coffee ventures in Indianapolis and Illinois failed. They opened a roastworks adjacent to their Fulton Heights cafe in 2015, and Corlett is a multi-time U.S. Barista Championship finalist.
Known for
- Designer-led brand identity by Seth Herman and Chuck Anderson
- Light-roast, single-origin focused, 3,000+ samples cupped per year
- Multi-year direct relationships with origin producers
- Roastery-cafe model in Fulton Heights with full visual transparency into production
- Multiple cafes in Michigan (Grand Rapids, Detroit's Parker's Alley, Leland's Fishtown)
Why it matters
Madcap proved that flagship-tier specialty roasting could anchor in a mid-size Midwestern city instead of the coastal hubs, and built a national brand identity (with designers Seth Herman and Chuck Anderson) that has been widely imitated. The Fulton Heights roastworks, with windows opening into the roastery from the cafe floor, is a textbook of transparency-by-architecture.
Production
- head roaster
- Ryan Knapp (Director of Coffee, co-founder)
- roastery location
- 1041 Fulton Street East, Fulton Heights, Grand Rapids — purpose-built roastworks opened 2015
Café
This roaster operates a café.
Recognitions
- U.S. Barista Championship finalist (Trevor Corlett, multiple years)