In the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, an old Pfizer factory hums through nights and weekends. With gates locked but lights on, no one would guess that this eerie building is where specialty coffee company Luft roasts its own brand of medicine. Light, floral, and sometimes fruity, Luft’s unique taste embodies the community and connection that co-founder Aaron Sutula sought when he first discovered his passion for coffee.
Open-mindedness and curiosity were keys to Sutula’s initial idea. While working in Salt Lake City seven years ago, he wandered into a new cafe near his office. He then befriended the owners, who taught him the subtleties of java. When Sutula moved to New York in 2012, he explored his passion further by attending an espresso machine seminar. There, he met Luft co-founder Blair Smith, the only other nonindustry attendee.
Then in 2014 Sutula and Smith met Justin Rodriguez, who at the time was roasting beans for Blue Bottle Coffee. The group bonded over brewing, biking and art, and eventually found a common vision for Luft. Rodriguez brought his roasting prowess to the venture. With a background in operations and design, Smith took care of packaging, logistics and delivery. Sutula, a Squarespace engineer with an artistic side, took charge of the photography and website. Meanwhile, the co-founders shared free samples with their friends to get the word out.
But how does an upstart roaster compete in a city saturated with specialty providers and big brands alike? “The wholesale market in New York is heavily dominated by larger specialty roasters,” Sutula says. “But we also have our own vision ... Our brand, our aesthetics, the flavor profiles we like and the idea of doing specialty coffee at a local, small-scale level. We want to form relationships and cater to the unique needs of our customers.”
“Unique” is right – the co-founders focus on customizing their “roast profiles”, which refer to the nuanced way that beans taste due in part to adjustments made in roasting temperature over time. According to Rodriguez: “If you had a rigid style of roasting where you simply and strictly created a ‘dark roast’ or ‘medium roast’, for example, you’d lose some of the potential scents and flavors the coffee has to offer.”
“When we get a new bean, we do a bunch of small roasts to figure out the best profile,” Sutula adds. “A profile basically looks like a bunch of lines on a graph. We can track all the data on the computer and use it to ensure future roasts are consistent ... it’s pretty crazy!”
Connecting with side hustlers and fellow creatives who share your passion is essential, Sutula says. To that end, Luft has found other businesses willing to take a chance on them. “For us, that’s been Marlow & Sons, Propeller Coffee and The Brooklyn Kitchen,” says Sutula. “They’ve been very supportive of us, wholesaling our coffee consistently.”
In Sutula’s experience, “people in New York City who are trying to make something from nothing are very willing to help each other out”. And he likes the human side of the business: “As a programmer, my work is very solitary. I get [off work] and feel starved for social interaction. It feels good to have something on the side where I can fulfill that need a little bit.”
For those thinking about building a coffee brand, Sutula notes that passion for your product isn’t enough. “You have to sell yourself,” he says. “You’ve got to go out and build relationships and get your product out there. It’s a lot of work and [seems] obvious in hindsight, but when we first started out, we didn’t realize the extent of salesmanship [required].”
The Luft co-founders say they would consider opening a brick-and-mortar shop eventually. But right now? They’re focused on getting their brand exposed to more coffee-lovers like them.
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