473: A Master Class in Wholesale Coffee w/ Honor Forte of Olympia Coffee Roasters

Developing the wholesale arm of your coffee roasting company boils down to the value can you offer your potential customers. Beyond the coffee itself, your wholesale customer needs assistance in their own coffee journey and your company, specifically the reps, need to be able to be equipped to deliver that help. At the heart of what makes a wholesale program successful is relationships. Todays guest has been doing this now for 13 years and walks the talk of delivering value through services and relationships with wholesale coffee clients with one of the nations best roasters. Honor Forte has been the Director of Wholesale at Olympia Coffee since 2011. He has worked as a Barista, Delivery Driver, and Trainer at Olympia Coffee, in addition to working in coffee on the East Coast from 2009 until 2011. He also serves as a Head Judge and Competition Committee member at the US Barista Competitions since 2013. In our conversation we discuss how Honor developed as a coffee professional to focus on sales, what it took to get clients and grow partnerships long term, what makes a good sales rep, and what you need to know to take the next step in building your own wholesale program either from the ground up, or to the next level. Links: www.olympiacoffee.com Olympia Coffee Roaster : https://www.instagram.com/olympiacoffee/ Honor Forte IG: https://www.instagram.com/honorforte/ Related Episodes: 246 : Selecting a Wholesale Coffee Provider 133 : 5 Keys to Successful Wholesale w/ Sarah Richmond 303 : Create Authentic Partnerships w/ Marc Gessler of Cat & Cloud Coffee Thank you to our amazing sponsors! Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com