We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Amy Duell a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Amy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with a fun one – what’s something you believe that most people in your industry (or in general) disagree with?

Automation is the way forward- Saying this out loud in a specialty coffee shop can sometimes raise eyebrows.

When the first Oceana Coffee shop opened in 2011, making the coffee systems as automated as possible was not at the top of the to-do list. Being a specialty coffee shop we focused on every detail of the coffee making process. To make an espresso we would weigh, grind, tamp, and time all of our espresso shots. Hours of training to learn how to steam milk properly would happen before a new barista could serve customers behind the bar. And constantly checking for consistency of coffee drinks was high on the priority list.

At Oceana Coffee we take pride in the story of our coffee from start to finish – From farm to cup… But over the years we have learned that utilizing tools and equipment to help streamline your daily tasks can be life changing! An example of this can be seen at our roasting facility in Tequesta, FL. Our daily espresso machine that sits on our counter is super-automatic (Eversys Cameo). Our baristas can pull the perfect espresso shot and steam beautiful micro-foam milk with the push of a button. And even better… Training time to use this machine takes about 30 minutes! This machine was a lesson for us that it is possible to retain quality control in a specialty coffee environment AND make your system more automated, efficient, and user friendly.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Oceana Coffee was founded in 2009 by Amy and Scotty Angelo. The couple spent many years traveling around the world working on private yachts before starting their business. It was there that they experienced what the world had to offer in terms of amazing foods, wines, and coffees. When they ended their careers in yachting they found themselves in South Florida surrounded by average coffee. This is what initially drove Scotty to start roasting coffee himself… A simple hobby turned into extreme passion and eventually business model. Fast forward to November of 2011 and the first Oceana Coffee was opened.

I started working for Amy and Scotty Angelo in early 2012 as a barista in their new cafe. I was a sophomore in high school and thought that being a barista would be a great first job. It turns out that my part time job as a high school student would become my full time career as an adult. Amy, Scotty and myself have now been working together for over ten years and are the core management and ownership team of Oceana Coffee. Amy and Scotty Angelo have taught me everything I know over the years about business- But most importantly they have taught me that perseverance and passion for what you do are the keys to a successful business. I am forever grateful that they allowed me to grow within Oceana Coffee at such a young age.

The fact that we are so quality driven at Oceana Coffee is something I am very proud of. I believe that amazing coffee can be life changing- Coffee is consumed by so many people every day… Why not LOVE IT! At Oceana Coffee we love helping our customers find their favorite origin or blend to enjoy at home. We also enjoy helping other cafes, restaurants, and hotels offer their guests an amazing coffee experience as well. You will hear Scotty Angelo say often “I want our customers to go bed at night excited about the cup of coffee they will have in the morning”. I think that statement says it all… I always hope that our quality product coupled with our passion for teaching and helping our customers will keep them coming back… Because coffee should be an enjoyable and delicious experience!

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

At Oceana Coffee we believe that keeping things personal is important!

At the Cafe Level – You can see our ownership and management team working side by side with our baristas daily. Scotty Angelo is still roasting 100% of our coffee, and his coffee roaster sits right beside the cafe bar at our roasting facility. As a customer you can come into our cafes and see our coffee roasting/making process from start to finish. I think that transparency is a key factor for our business model. Our core values will always be about providing an excellent quality product while giving great customer service. Serving our local customer base daily and making sure they have a great experience from start to finish is something that I think keeps them coming back… On top of their coffee addiction of course!

At the Wholesale Level – We believe that the more we can help our customers with their systems and coffee processes, the better off they will be when serving their customers. We focus on communicating and checking in with our wholesale customers on a weekly basis not only for coffee order needs, but also for training, maintenance, and service requests. Any time one of our customers is reaching out to Oceana Coffee for an inquiry or issue they have a direct & open line of communication with a member of our team 24/7. The personal touch and communication is a huge bonus of choosing a more local operation like Oceana Coffee.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Oceana Coffee has had success building its reputation at the local and national level in different ways.

At the local level – Starting out as the first specialty coffee roaster in Palm Beach County really put us on the map for lack of better words. Back in 2011 there were very few coffee roasters in the Florida, roasting coffee and making the coffee in the same space. I think building up a local following really helped us grow and compete with some of the larger commercial chains in the area at that time. Word of mouth from our local fans to their friends and family was (and still is) a great way to build the brand as well. Nothing is better than watching a new customer take their first sip of Oceana Coffee and fall in love with the flavor.

At the national level – I really have to credit Amy and Scotty Angelo for always pushing Oceana Coffee to stay relevant in the specialty coffee “arena” nationally. Being naturally competitive Scotty has always been open to entering our coffees into national and international competitions. He is also always pushing to be better, roast better, and try new techniques. He also enjoys helping teach others about coffee, and helping judge coffee competitions as well. Taking home medals and winning roasting competitions has really helped Oceana Coffee make a name for itself in South Florida. Amy Angelo is also always driving our name forward. She is our “networking” expert in the business, and is always finding us amazing people to connect with or opportunities to participate in.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.oceanacoffee.com
• Instagram: @OceanaCoffee
• Facebook: Oceana Coffee