Coffee company giving back
CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. » A new Capital Region coffee company is aiming to do good for the community.
Current Coffee, founded this year by Clifton Park couple Justin and Aubrey Huestis, sells coffee online and gives 10 percent of each sale away to local charities.
The company is an online business offering bulk coffee in three styles: Electric Light Roast, City Medium Roast and Midnight Dark Roast. The online shop also sells hand-thrown Current Coffee mugs, bundles and monthly coffee subscriptions.
Justin Huestis, a Burnt Hills native, has been a coffee-lover since a young age. “It’s always been a part of my life,” he said.
Huestis decided to start Current Coffee after a tumultuous few years in his life when he was trying to figure out his future. After switching from college to banking to working for a small local business, to insurance and then to the nonprofit world, while even considering becoming a pastor, Huestis was sitting in a coffee shop when he realized he was overthinking it.
“I need to find a passion, coffee, and pair it with a purpose, which is giving to charities,” Huestis said, recalling his train of thought at the time of Current Coffee’s inception.
After coming to this realization in January, Huestis studied up on the science behind coffee and created a business plan in preparation for an early summer launch.
Then in June, on his way to a coffee conference in Chicago, Huestis was thrown off of a horse and broke both of his wrists.
This injury created a setback. “You need two hands to run a business,” Huestis said, but nevertheless Current Coffee debuted in August and has been growing ever since.
In addition to selling coffee to shoppers from near and far, Current Coffee has partnered with four area nonprofit organizations: City Mission of Schenectady, Things of My Very Own, Inc., Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Capital Region and Troy Boys & Girls Club, which is its Partner of the Month for November.
At the virtual checkout, customers are able to pick which one they’d like their money to assist.
Current Coffee plans to expand the list, while still being able to offer significant donations to the organizations. “We definitely want to make an impact, so we’ll grow the number of partners we have as we grow as a company,” Huestis said.
In choosing which charities to feature, Huestis said he looks for those that have goals and values that align with the company’s, as well as where there is a great need.
The owners first learned of the Troy Boys & Girls Club and its programming at the club’s Comfort Cuisine fundraising event earlier this year, as Huestis was in the midst of creating the Current Coffee business model. “I fell in
love with the program,” he said, adding that more cities need these programs, but they do require a lot of support.”
Patrick Doyle, chief executive officer of the Troy Boys & Girls Club said the partnership with Current Coffee allows for more people in the community to hear about the organization. “It allows a new side of marketing that we hope can spread a positive message to our community while enjoying a top notch coffee.”
Looking ahead, Huestis said the long-term goal for Current Coffee is to open a shop in Schenectady, the Electric City, from which the company drew its theme.
Having a physical location for the public to visit would also create more opportunity to help charitable causes. “We’re a social good enterprise and we’re looking to make an impact in the community,” Huestis said. For now, Current Coffee is doing that through its 10 percent program, but the owners would like to do a lot more. Providing jobs, promoting volunteerism and building awareness for organizations are just some of the company’s ideas on how it can further aid the community.
Current Coffee is not just about selling bags of coffee online. “We want to be so much more than that,” Huestis said, adding that he hopes the effort can create a ripple effect around the country. “We’re looking to start a movement here.”
More information on Current Coffee, including the online shop, can be found at www.currentcoffeeny.com.