Early in Sweet Bloom’s history, we worked closely (and still do) with some of the best importers in the US to purchase our coffee. These importers have similar values to Sweet Bloom and a genuine care for those they purchase coffee from. Most of these importers hold “Spot” coffee which means they’ve purchased a given amount of coffee from a specific producer or co-op and import it to their warehouses as inventory. Many of our first coffees were purchased from importers as spot coffee. A few coffees, especially from East Africa, are still purchased this way.

As Sweet Bloom grows, most of our coffee purchases have transitioned away from spot to contracted. Contractual buying, basically means we commit to purchase a given amount of coffee at an agreed upon price, from a specific producer or co-op, before the coffee leaves the country of origin. Contracted coffee is the beginning of what we view as a relationship coffee. These purchases still rely heavily on importers, but there is sustainability built in as we show a level of commitment to a given lot, and the importer can make a more confident purchase from the producer.

During Sweet Bloom’s second year as a roastery, we began to purchase lots again, from producers we bought from in our first year. We view a repeat purchase from a given producer or co-op as a significant step towards building an ongoing relationship. The bulk of coffee we purchase now from Central and South America are at a minimum, second time purchases. For example, 50% of our Hometown Blend comes from two growing groups (Timana, and Los Naranjos in Colombia). We rotate seasonal lots from these two groups, and have been doing this for many years. The Timana and Naranjos groups can be confident that we’ll continue to purchase large quantities from them every year. They can rely on our repeat purchases, and we can plan on getting great coffee.

Ultimately, our intention is to build on our relationships with producers that go beyond visits, in ways that are mutually beneficial. One project that we are proud of and will continue to replicate is pre-paying for our coffee. This allows the producer to have access to funds at a time when there is a large outflow of cash to pay pickers and increased expenses due to processing.

Building genuine relationships with producers is hard. With each harvest, changing markets, competition from other buyers etc, the best of intentions can sometimes turn into what feels like failure. It can be messy and disappointing. At times, we’ve let down producers that we work with, and at other times, we’ve been let down. But we’ve also built relationships that are deeply meaningful, mutually rewarding and long lasting, and we will continue to work towards that end!

For us, a relationship that falls into this final category means we've worked together with this producer for many years. We've visited them, they've visited us, and we've built a relationship that goes beyond a financial transaction. We have an understanding of:

1) challenges faced from one year to the next
2) sustainability practices on the farm
3) how the farmer is caring for their staff
4) ways in which we can benefit projects the farmers have implemented on the farm and in the community

We also consider this stage as a stepping stone into the future of how we purchase coffee and build relationship. We are working on a green buying strategy where we set prices directly with producers that far exceed Fair-trade prices and meets our understanding of a living wage for the producer and those working under them.