We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jesse Mohler. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jesse below.

Alright, Jesse thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

What it takes to be successful… you must first be willing to fail… and fail again… and again. You have to kind of be a risk-taker and even when those risks are very calculated, there’s still never 100% certainty that they’ll pay off. So, successful person has to be willing to go through these trials and treat them as learning experiences in order to move forward. This mindset can be applied to nearly every aspect of life, from personal growth to business goals and human relationships.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I work a day job as a digital print specialist and graphic designer. Kampfire Coffee started as hobby that was fueled by my desire to create a coffee that was better than some of the corporate giants whilst using very minimal resources. After attending the Columbus Coffee Fest in Sept. 2017, I was inspired to start roasting. By March of 2018 I had designed a logo and a created a business concept for the LLC.

I started roasting coffee over a backyard fire pit with a cast iron skillet and a wooden spoon (hence the kampfire name). After getting the basic idea down, I moved into my kitchen using a Whirly Pop Popcorn popper, and then a hand-turned nut roaster. Eventually working up to a small drum-style coffee roaster.

The mission statement “NO FLUFF, NO FRILLS. JUST GREAT COFFEE” holds true to these values. I wanted to create a great product without all the gimmicky marketing ploys that you often see throughout the industry (artificial flavoring, fancy plastic bags, etc…). The Kampfire branding/packaging is purposefully designed to use as much recycled, eco-friendly & biodegradable materials as possible. The concentration is focused on the core of the product vs. fancy packaging with lackluster contents.

Some of the coffee blends have been named after camping areas & hiking destinations around my hometown in Ohio’s Hocking Hills region. I always try to tie my roots into the business as much as possible. A lot of the “leave no trace” rules that I was taught growing up in that area translate into the business model of creating minimal waste and using simple, compostable packaging.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

I work a full-time job during the day. I was able to start setting some money back and started investing it into supplies that I’d need for this hobby. The hobby then turned into a business idea and took off from there. Because I don’t have a brick-and-mortar shop, I was able to use a spare room at my home to start roasting coffee. Once I got the LLC and started selling it online and at a few retail locations I set up a separate bank account for all coffee stuff. It’s all about taking the profits and carefully reinvesting them into the brand to generate more sales growth. So far, I have been fortunate enough to grow this thing steadily, funding it through product sales and through my day-job earnings.

Looking ahead, I may have to upgrade my roaster to a larger unit to keep up with growing demand. If this happens anytime soon, I’d likely have to apply for a business loan to fund the larger equipment and start shopping for a location larger than my spare bedroom.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I think all small business owners that survived the COVID shutdowns deserve a shoutout for their resilience. A lot of people took massive hits, and some had to close down for good. I was very fortunate for the support I was able to get from the local community that kept the business afloat. There were a few times that I was convinced I was wasting my time on this project and wanted to throw in the towel. But I was able to persevere and keep it alive through that crazy time. Now I’m full-speed ahead and picking up a few new retail locations. I’m not sure if it’s resilience, hard headedness, or just plain stubbornness, but somehow, I’ve been able to keep it alive and growing!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.kampfirecoffee.com
• Instagram: kampfirecoffeeroasters
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/kampfirecoffeeroastersllc