Crimson Cup is named for both the color of coffee cherry’s and the color of its founder’s alma mater, Harvard. As a recent Harvard grad Greg Ubert had a comfy job and a great future. But it wasn’t his passion. Ubert decided to drop everything and move back in with his parents in Columbus, Ohio to pursue his new passion: coffee.

Ubert’s passion was for more than just coffee. He wanted to build a company that would 1. have an engaging work life 2. a fun environment and 3. a culture of giving. Since launching the company in 1991, Crimson Cup has found many new and unique ways of meeting these goals. One way they had done this is by helping coffee houses start all over the country. They provide a business plan and training to kickstart the process, but don’t require them to sign a long-term contract with Crimson Cup. Why? Because they want – as they say – to have their feet on fire. If a coffee house finds a better roaster to work with, that means Crimson Cup needs to be better. It’s this drive that has kept Crimson Cup going, even as coffee culture has shifted greatly since they started.

As the world has become smaller, Crimson Cup has also realized the needs of their producers. To do their part in fixing the broken coffee supply chain, Crimson Cup started their Friend2Farmer direct trade program. This program has had them purchase coffee from 4 different farms for far more than market value or fair trade value. They are continuing to grow this program.

Community has always been a key focus of Ubert since starting the company. While creating coffee houses has been one part of building communities all over the country, Crimson Cup also gives back to the community in other ways. They donate to the Cancer Support Community of Central Ohio and See Kids Dream – a non-profit that focuses on empowering children – with the sales of their coffee.

We’re excited to be able to send Crimson Cup out to our subscribers. Enjoy!