14
BUSINESS connect MAGAZINE
April/May 2022
hospitality
The daily grind a successful Business Connect recently had a coffee with Peter Gibson, co-founder and director of Grindsmith Coffee Roasters, based at 3 sites across Manchester and Salford. We looked at the journey the business has made to date, along with the ups and downs of recent years, navigating problems mirrored across the whole hospitality sector.
Peter – tell us about your business journey? “Myself and my business partner
Luke Tomlinson started the business in 2014 with the intention to increase the number of speciality coffee outlets in Manchester. “To fund the launch we did a kickstarter campaign – one of the first I believe to fund a coffee outlet – and we opened a little
garden/office in Greengate Square near Manchester Cathedral. “We got an opportunity then to open a pop-up in Manchester’s first co-working space, and that pretty much cemented us as a growing business with our Deansgate store. From there we took on investment and opened Media City. “Then in 2018 we started roasting our own coffee beans, and pretty soon after that we closed Deansgate as the Great Northern was being redeveloped, moving the outlet over to Bridge Street.” So how many outlets do you have now? “Three in total. Two in Media City – one at The Garage which is our flagship store, plus we’ve partnered with HOST, Salford’s Home Of Skills & Technology, running the catering space on the 7th floor of Blue. “The Pod has moved from Greengate Square to Pollard Street in the Northern Quarter. Unfortunately our Bridge Street outlet didn’t survive Covid.” Tell us about your supply chain, particularly now you roast your own coffee beans? “The heart and passion we felt about the process saw us travelling to Colombia to meet some farmers with a view to working directly and supporting directly the people at the heart of our business. “We wanted to cultivate a direct relationship, without working through importers or third parties.” Did you have help in this process?
Peter Gibson, Co-founder and Director of Grindsmith Coffee Roasters
“After purchasing our first coffee roasting machine in May 2018, we
hired in a consultant for a week to help us with training and operation of the new kit. It turned out that the consultant had a part ownership of a Colombian coffee farm. It was from there we decided to work with him on building those direct relationships. He suggested putting a trip together to travel to Colombia where he’d introduce us to a number of farmers and we can taste the beans at source. “So, in November 2018 we packed our bags and met our consultant in Colombia where he introduced us personally to 15 farms, but we actually tasted coffee from over 100 farms whilst we were out there. “From there we have now got a personal relationship with the majority of suppliers of our coffee beans. This means we can ensure the farmers get the maximum payment for their produce, making sure they are treated fairly and honestly, and it also guarantees quality and freshness for the coffee beans through the whole journey from origin to the espresso served in our shops.” Tell us more about the brand – where did the name Grindsmith come from? “We were searching for another term describing someone perfecting their craft in coffee. “The word Barista wasn’t right for us, but the idea of a ‘smith’, like a goldsmith or blacksmith for example, appealed very much. ‘Coffeesmith’ had already been taken, so we opted for Grindsmith.” I believe you have an association with Nescafé. Can you tell us more about this? “This was actually a response through a message on LinkedIn. Nescafé’s project manager for Azera sent me a message asking if I was interested in a chat about a forthcoming project they had planned which involved working with an independent coffee roaster.
