Episode 159 // Josh and Sara Holmquist of Normal Roasting Company
Today on the podcast we're with Josh and Sara Holmquist of Normal Roasting Company in Burwell, Nebraska (pop. 1,079). In this episode you'll find out how Josh and Sara bought a coffee company on a whim and grew it from a hobby to what is now multiple businesses. They talk about how they dealt with overwhelming growth, building an iconic brand, scaling your business in the early years, plus the wholesale side of their business and the amazing community they have built there. These two are such a fun couple and they truly have built an incredible brand!
“The coffee industry in Nebraska is still pretty young, and the midwest in general is still pretty young. But I think we’re going to see more and more shops showing up, we’re gonna see more and more coffee roasters coming in, and I gladly welcome all of it. I think there’s plenty of room for all of us.”
- Josh Holmquist
“If you’re a small business owner surround yourself with incredible humans. You want a good leadership team within your organization, you want a good banker, a good lawyer, and a good insurance person. Be thinking about what years 5, 6, and 7 look like and what scaleability is going to do, and farm out all of the things that you hate as soon as you’re financially able to.”
- Josh Holmquist
“The whole heart behind our wholesale is extra care, not just a place to order your beans from. We have a lot of support that is just not out there unless you’re paying for it. There’s a lot of trainings and opportunities we offer for free. Wholesale is the backbone of our business and honestly where I think we have the most fun.”
- Sara Holmquist
“It’s just been really really fun to come up with this idea [for wholesale] and then implement it and then see the success and the positive feedback from the implementation of it. So that’s been super cool.”
- Josh Holmquist
PODCAST SHOW NOTES AND LINKS:
Burwell, Nebraska
Arcadia, Nebraska
Theory Coffee Tech
Normal Wholesale Collective
Follow along with Normal Roasting Company here:
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