It’s been a week since I announced that I’m now at the helm of Loam Coffee. It’s been a touch over two weeks since that change took place. In the midst of it all, we had already planned a family trip to Santa Barbara, California. The timing actually couldn’t have been any better.
Each morning I’d wake up and make my way over to one of the local coffee roasters. I’d sit there with my laptop open and dream. What have I learned over the past three years of being away from owning Loam Coffee? What has changed? More importantly, where do I want to take this brand? What am I dreaming about?
One of the first tasks I had to jump into was on social media. Loam had been losing momentum for the last several years. A growing decline in followers and engagement. To me, these are not simply numbers or what people call “vanity metrics.” They represent you. Real people. Not only that, but real people who willingly, at one point, thought Loam Coffee was important enough in their lives to follow, comment, and share.
Being a bit obsessed with social media analytics, that was one of the first things I jumped into. What has been a blast is that so many of you reached out through DMs to re-engage and even welcome me back. But ramping up growth on social media is the easy part. Ultimately, it is tied to trust and rebuilding it.
As I shared last week, in the months leading up to when I sold Loam Coffee, I was burned out. I let too many things slide. That included relationships. It is honestly painful to admit. In rebuilding this brand, I need to build trust, and authenticity and follow-through are the only way that happens.
I’ve committed myself to be more open and honest. Whereas before, I felt like too often I hid behind the brand. I inwardly contended it was about humility, but instead, I realized I was just insecure. But what’s funny is how much things have changed in three years. I’m not hiding behind this brand anymore. At the same time, Loam Coffee is not about me. It’s about you. You’re the heroes in this adventure.
That said, on a practical and organizational level around here, I’m still working on internal systems. We’re working on sourcing more green coffee to roast. As I mentioned last week, I’ve been working on a slight rebranding of our logo and coffee bags. That also means we now have a growing collection of gear in our online store. We’ve already seen you notice and start buying without announcing it, which is exciting. Thank you!
New-look coffee bags, refreshed logos, and new hats and other gear are the easy part. Now comes the fun part of rebuilding this company and not only dreaming about where to take it over the next ten years but putting that plan into action. That also entails delving into taking on some social enterprise characteristics, but that’s another conversation for another day.
Again, thank you for your outpouring of support, kind words, and encouragement. I am excited to go on this new adventure with you.
