LULAZO #2
Learning curves, getting rooted, planning for plenty
Hey pals!
Here we are, closing out the year already and I can hardly believe it’s not still summer.
It’s been such a wild year of learning, growth, laughs, and of course— delicious coffees. I’m so grateful to all of the people at home and businesses who made all of it possible. LULO found its way to so many more people and places this year and I couldn’t be more stoked about it. Check out this page for a list of places that serve or sell LULO and start the new year off right.
Honestly, all of this growth and fun kind of snuck up on me! With such a busy summer and fall, I am almost happy that this winter has been noticeably slower across the board. It’s been a perfect time to look at my little company, reflect on what’s been going on, and plan on how I can do it better in the years to come.
In these quieter times, I consider myself fortunate to now be able to do this. I’m lucky to be able to take a moment or two to improve my company systems, my personal health (turns out a broken hip doesn’t go away, even after 2.5 years), and define some goals for next year.
It’s really quite simple. LULO is a coffee roastery defined by its roots. All of the coffee I source comes from (outstanding) people I met before starting this company, and the community-based projects they represent. Five sources between two countries, Colombia and Costa Rica.
As a small roastery, I work with as few producers as possible in order to maximize my purchase quantity with each one, with the understanding that the breadth of flavor possible from one farm is immense. In doing so, I aim for more consistent purchases across a shorter timeframe and consolidate shipments for better rates (fml lol). Add in regular visits and I’d say you have yourself some holistic sourcing right there.
If you’ve been following along, you probably already know most of the people and places I source coffee from. But if you don’t— not to worry. From January 10th to February 16th, I’ll be in Colombia and Costa Rica visiting with the pals and diving into a whole host of things, introductions included. While I’m gone, we (the pals and I) will be offering coffees roasted in Bogota through my wholesale partners here in Canada! We did this last year and it went over really well, so get stoked for this time around. More details to follow in the new year.
You might head to the webshop and notice it’s not quite as…robust…as it normally is. This is evidence of LULO’s growing pains. I want you to rest assured that (knock on wood) this will never happen again. There’s an aspect to LULO that’s part importer, and that’s something I’ll be embracing in 2023 with more detailed, long-term forecasting. The days of last minute DHL shipments are over, my friends. From now on, it’s evenly spaced, consolidated shipments, designed with abundance in mind.
So as we head into a new year, I’m really feeling rested, rooted, and ready to absolutely rock 2023.
To celebrate the learning curves that come along with growing businesses and just life itself, the recipe this month is a classic V60 recipe paired with an experimental coffee from the Liz-Andela family, because sometimes you don’t need to reinvent the wheel to find some new flavours.
Happy new year :)
- Kev
