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

John, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

After 15 years in the energy industry, I decided it was time for a change. I never gave a lot of thought to being an entrepreneur but that slowly began to change after Sarah and I traveled with our kids around SE Asia on a sabbatical for a few months. We also went down to Colombia on the same trip and stayed on a few coffee plantations. From there I learned a great deal about the specialty coffee market and the more direct sourcing models. Farmers can be heavily incentivized to focus more closely on the quality of coffee and the processing methods by earning a higher price per pound (rather than targeting the highest yield). Understanding the difference this was making in people’s lives and the communities around the coffee farms had me thinking we could be a part of it. I had always loved coffee as a consumer but didn’t know much about the agricultural side and the origin of coffee growing. I brought a different skill set and perspective to the coffee industry, and ultimately believe that people make the difference. Sarah and I have always had a passion and commitment to missional non-profits and we want to live that out through Servant Coffee. Not only are we committed to relationship sourcing through partners around the world but we have also fostered and supported a couple local charities that are making a difference in the Denver area.

John, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Absolutely! I currently reside in Denver, Colorado with my beautiful wife and two kids who are in elementary school. We’ve been so lucky to live here the past 3.5 years and enjoy the many outdoor activities that Colorado has to offer. I’m originally from Houston, TX and I spent the first 10 years of my professional life there working in the energy industry. After that, I met my wife Sarah and after getting married in 2012 we moved to London on an international assignment with my company. We ended up staying there just over 5 years and both of our kids were born there. We really enjoyed the whole experience living overseas, meeting some amazing people, and taking advantage of travel opportunities throughout Europe. After 15 years at the same company, we decided it was time for a change. We shipped our stuff back to the US and then headed out traveling with the kids for nearly 4 months all throughout SE Asia. It was an incredible experience with some good days and bad ones. During that time, I thought a lot about my next step professionally and decided to do something totally different. After SE Asia, we spent some time down in Colombia between Bogotá and the coffee triangle area. It was where I started learning more about the specialty coffee industry and how it can make a real difference in people’s lives. I decided this was where I wanted to pour my skills into. So we moved to Denver and the rest is history with Servant Coffee. We truly look to serve others first in everything we do, both from a client perspective and a sourcing perspective.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

At the end of the day, it seems the coffee business is really not much different from any other business. You can buy great coffee from a lot of places but I believe people want a connection to who you are and what you represent. The best advice I ever received in business is that people want to buy from people. We’re in the relationship business, and the last two years has taught us just how important that is to everyone. We want to know our clients and help make them successful. We strive hard to deliver value at the end of the day, but more importantly we want people to know who Servant Coffee is and what we stand for.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

I believe trust is at the heart of every great business. I try to maintain a high level of trust with my staff and make them feel empowered to make decisions. Everyone will make mistakes along the way but it’s how we learn from those mistakes that defines whether the business can succeed. Servant Coffee is about the people who represent it. Each one of our team members is a vital part of our success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://servantcoffee.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/servantcoffee/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/servantcoffeeco
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/servant-coffee-llc