We’ve been brewing a bright new future for Reconstruction Coffee. Now it’s time to share.
Reconstruction Coffee Roasters will always be a product of our love of, fascination with, and enthusiasm for coffee and community. As a small family start-up, we’ve spent the last two years giving our time, tears, talents, and laughter to a wild idea based in the notion that specialty coffee that’s lovingly crafted, carefully roasted, and thoughtfully brewed could bring people together no matter their differences, no matter what was happening in the world.
“Why would you open a specialty coffee roaster in Villa Ridge?” we heard time and time again. For us, the answer was simple: Villa Ridge and all of Franklin County are as much a part of our story as the coffee we roast and the family we roast it with. There was no better fit.
We don’t know if we could have made a rural-town, rolling-hills specialty coffee roaster successful on our own. And we never had to find out…because we were never on our own. Reconstruction was made successful with the extraordinary outpouring of support from our community—the beating heart of this entrepreneurial endeavor that we love so much.
We have grown and thrived beyond our wildest dreams in our 18 months. You’ve launched us way beyond the point of where we hoped to be: as a bootstrapped start-up that opened its doors in the middle of a pandemic, owned and operated by three people who gave this passion project all of the time and attention they could. We are so grateful for you. And we’re blown away by how far we’ve come. By how far you all have brought us.
Over the last few months, we’ve come to recognize a challenging truth: We’ve hit the limits of our growth, under the limits that our individual lives set for us. Emily has two young children and an award-winning photography business to tend to; Erin and Clayton welcomed their second daughter last fall and both still work full-time jobs, with Clayton commuting to and from Chicago every week. We never expected to grow this much, this fast. We thought we had years of runway before making some hard choices.
But you all proved us wrong. You support us, you encourage us, and you love our coffee. You’ve literally made our dreams come true.
Which brought us to a hard decision. We knew we could keep Reconstruction going on its current path, giving it the time and focus we could while keeping the status quo…or we could find someone with a new outlook, a fresh sense of excitement, and the resources needed to grow this company we love so much into something worthy of the love you’ve shown us since September 2020. As hard as it was, we chose the latter.
And we’ve connected with the perfect person to keep the future of Reconstruction bright and vibrant.
It is with complicated emotions—the foremost of which is gratitude—that we announce that Reconstruction Coffee Roasters has a new owner in the careful, curious, thoughtful and excited hands of Deb Giffin.
Those of you who live in Franklin County might know Deb; at the very least, you probably know her work. She owns The Swallow’s Nest in downtown Washington, MO, for a start. And for those of you who don’t know her…Deb is a passionate entrepreneur, a champion of the community, and a savvy strategist of growth.
Under Deb’s careful guidance, Reconstruction will see its first true brick-and-mortar retail location, roasting classes and cupping demonstrations, unparalleled brand partnerships, and a whole ecosystem of coffee culture befitting the encouragement you’ve all given us these last two years.
But wait. There’s more. Because you know we couldn’t just hand our baby over to someone else—no matter how capable—and simply part with what we’ve built.
Emily will be staying on to oversee all operations for Reconstruction. Her institutional knowledge will be more important than ever as she charts a path forward through bigger, brighter territory while keeping our roastery true to its roots. Erin and Clayton will be moving on to new adventures outside of Missouri, but not without leaving a proper mark. Clayton will be training our new roaster (and we cannot wait for you to meet her!), ensuring that the coffee you love will continue to be available, with the same flavor notes and roast profiles. This will also set up an exciting new expansion of single origins and unique blends designed and carefully crafted by the new Master Roaster for Reconstruction Coffee.
We’re not closing the book on our roastery; we’re simply turning a page. Our hearts are heavy, and our hearts are full. We cannot wait to see what you all make of Reconstruction.
Thank you for everything.
It only gets better from here.