Photo | Courtesy of Brilla Coffee
November 12, 2019
Manufacturing Insights
Rutland couple brings Nicaraguan farming roots to coffee startup
Photo | Courtesy of Brilla Coffee
Husband and wife Alexis and Osiris (left) Vallejos started Brilla Coffee using their connections with Nicaraguan farmers.
This fall, Rutland coffee roasting startup Brilla Coffee signed a deal to be the exclusive provider of all coffees for Worcester cafe Brew on the Grid. The founders, husband and wife Alexis and Osiris Vallejos, are third-generation farmers from Nicaragua who moved to Central Massachusetts 15 years ago and started the company three months ago to focus on sustainability for coffee farmers. Alexis Vallejos spoke with WBJ about the company.
Why did you start Brilla Coffee?
We are very familiar with the coffee industry and know the farmers in Nicaragua.
We wanted to go back to help the communities and help the farmers, who work so hard in Nicaragua to provide high-quality coffee for us. Our business and our pricing makes the coffee grower and the coffee farmer sustainable.
How did you end up partnering with Brew on the Grid?
They were looking for a new coffee partner who was local and met their mission and vision. They want to help support the local community and local business. They really love the idea of working with someone who is focused on making coffee sustainable.
So, all the coffees at Brew on the Grid are from you and your wife?
Yes, we are the exclusive provider for all their coffees moving forward - espresso, light roast, dark roast. The coffee is there now. We did posts on Facebook and Instagram, and they did as well, because they were proud to be working with us.
We are very excited to be able to help and work with local business.
Where is your coffee from?
We import from nine different countries, but our flagship coffee is from Nicaragua. We work closely with a farmer, Diego Chavarria, who is a family friend, and providing quality, sustainable coffee is part of his mission. His farm is right next to my father’s cattle farm in Nicaragua.
Other countries we import our coffee from include Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia and Ethiopia, We are trying to stay focused on places where we do direct trade with farmers, where we can pay above value and they can reinvest in their farms.
What are your operations like?
In Rutland, we have our dedicated facility just for roasting the coffee. We roast a few hundred pounds every week.
We sell around Rutland, and we are getting the Worcester sales now. We are speaking to other cafes in the Northborough and Shrewsbury area.
What are your long-term goals?
Our long-term plan is to keep this as our long-term passion. We want to extend and continue growing, because the more we sell, the more we can give back to the community.
We want to provide everyone a great, sustainable coffee locally. There is a mission behind it; it is not just a company.
This interview was conducted and edited for length and clarity by WBJ Editor Brad Kane.
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