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Lee Lizzotte, True Love Coffee Co. · Coffee People Podcast

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Hey everyone, this is Ryan, the host of Coffee People and Coffee
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story. Hey everyone, welcome back to
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the Coffee People podcast. I'm your host, Ryan Walt.
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The show is presented by Roast our Coffee packaging and is part
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of the Roast West Coast Coffee Network.
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Go to roastwestcoast.com to find recaps of this show, our Coffee
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Smarter podcast, and so much more.
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On the Coffee People podcast, we connect with guests who have
1:30
some sort of connection. To the coffee industry.
1:33
We share the stories of. Entrepreneurship, motivation,
1:35
challenge, and inspiration. Often with a great cup of
1:39
coffee. Today I'm drinking a Kalita Wave
1:42
brewed cup of our Relative Coffee collab.
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Yeah, no, yeah. If you'd like to give it a try
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and drink one with me, you'll find the link to the Relative
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Shop in this podcast's show notes.
1:53
Our guest today is Lee Lizotte. He's the founder and head
1:57
roaster of True Love Coffee in San Juan Capistrano, CA.
2:01
We're also joined by Lee's Weimaraner, Ruth, who is playing
2:04
with a toy in the background. I encourage you to follow at
2:07
True Love Coffee Co on Instagram while you're listening today,
2:10
and I'll share all the links in this podcast show notes or if
2:14
you're listening in our newsletter found at
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roastwestcoast.com. It should be right there at the
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top. Wherever you are, I hope that
2:22
you have a good cup of coffee at the ready because it's time for
2:25
another coffee People conversation, this one with Lee
2:29
Lazada, founder of True Love Coffee Company.
2:41
My name's Lee Started True Love Coffee about 3 years ago.
2:45
We're based in San Juan Capistrano in Southern
2:47
California. I mean, an important question to
2:50
get started is what kind of dog do you have?
2:51
I. Have a Weimeriner.
2:54
Yeah, I saw him bouncing around back there.
2:57
Oh yeah, she's, she's crazy and separation anxiety is real, so I
3:02
just leave the door open. Separation anxiety is real over.
3:06
Here too but it's more for me like dog would rather just take
3:09
a nap but I'm like no no no you need to.
3:11
Come here, pay attention well. You know, true love is your
3:17
company now and there's a lot going on and a lot of new stuff
3:21
in the last year, but that's not kind of where where your coffee
3:26
journey started. I'm wondering if you have kind
3:28
of a first memory with coffee that you made.
3:31
You think, oh, this is kind of cool, this is interesting, or
3:33
something that triggers a memory for you, sending you down this
3:36
path. Yeah.
3:38
So I used to live right by hidden house in San Juan
3:42
Capistrano and I'd go in there pretty much every morning before
3:46
my shift at the driving range and get coffee and bother them
3:50
about all things coffee because I was just getting really into
3:54
it. And they got, I feel like this
3:57
is so common natural Ethiopia tastes like blueberries in
4:02
around 2012. I feel like everyone's coffee
4:04
story starts with that. But yeah, I really remember
4:07
being like, this is crazy because before that I was just
4:09
drinking like whatever badge brew coffee and going to the
4:13
golf course, take up golf balls all day.
4:15
And then I had that one. I was like, this is so
4:17
different. And that really just, yeah, just
4:22
kick start my like go to just keep learning about coffee.
4:26
Like I always want to continue my education and just knowing
4:28
that coffee could taste that different really excited me.
4:33
Well, you didn't stop there. If I'm not mistaken, you worked
4:36
at Hidden House, didn't you? For some time.
4:38
I did. How did that happen?
4:40
Did they just get sick of answering your questions and be
4:42
like you might as well just stay here all day?
4:46
Honestly, kind of, I just, yeah, I would always just talk to
4:49
them. Bug about a job and at the time
4:52
is pretty much his family working there.
4:53
I think there's like two other people that were like family
4:55
friends that were working there. So there's like a really small
4:58
group for a while. And then one morning I was
5:02
scheduled to work at the golf course.
5:03
I don't know if he's going to admit this, but I'm pretty sure
5:07
Ben had a little too much strength the night before.
5:09
He had a party face then and he called me at like 6:00 AM that
5:14
morning was like, hey, you want to come in to work?
5:16
And I was like, Yep. So I called out sick for the
5:18
golf course and came in and worked.
5:21
And he just hid in the back, made smoothies and worked on
5:24
register for a while and then finally got to run and make some
5:26
coffee. And yeah, I stayed there from
5:29
2012 to like late 2016. So I started barista and store
5:36
manage San Juan, and then I learned to roast with John Dale
5:41
at the Santa Ana location. Definitely got my start there.
5:45
Got to learn how to make coffee. But I never really got into the
5:49
sourcing or building profiles. It's kind of more just like
5:52
doing production stuff. But yeah, it's definitely a
5:54
great start. What happens then in 2016?
5:58
Where do you go from there? I moved Los Angeles to like try
6:05
and learn more about coffee. I worked as the bar manager for
6:09
Squirrel and Silver Lake, which is great.
6:12
They're super high volume and Jessica, the owner, let me be
6:16
creative with the menu. So I got to get coffee from all
6:19
around the world and work with much cool roasters and that was
6:23
an awesome experience. But like being introverted and
6:29
like pretty shy, like being in a new area, I just did not know
6:36
anyone. So like everyday office, I
6:37
myself just coming home and I hang up my family and I was
6:40
like, and then like my girlfriend at the time and she
6:43
worked in restaurants too, but she was more dinner service and
6:47
I was, you know, brunch. So like just opposite schedule.
6:50
So it's just like a pretty lonely time for me.
6:53
So I was like, wow, I love the job I'm doing.
6:56
It was just like everything outside of it was pretty
6:58
miserable. So I was like, I'm going to come
7:00
back home. So I hit up then again and
7:04
worked the head mouse again. Yeah.
7:08
So it's nice to be able to come back on that relationship, you
7:10
know? Yeah, I think there's some
7:12
bravery in that though, too, and saying, you know, the thing I
7:15
like this thing that I came here for, but it's just some, there's
7:19
something about this fit that isn't right.
7:21
And I'm going to go back to where I was.
7:24
Yeah, You know, some people would would feel like, oh, I
7:27
can't go back. I can't go and do that thing
7:29
again. But you recognized it as a value
7:32
to you, which I think is pretty insightful.
7:37
Thanks. Yeah, I mean, it was just, you
7:39
know, a great environment. I get just felt really homey
7:42
too. So just like I think, you know,
7:45
he liked to help me out and I knew there's more to, you know,
7:48
learn at the roasting side there too.
7:49
Guys, going back to being a barista, I was like, this is
7:54
cool, but I've connected so much more with the roasting side.
7:57
So I'll be able to go back and be an assistant roaster again.
8:00
It just I got to like, you know, really hone in on my actual
8:06
passion and coffee. So that was great.
8:09
But then around that time I met my now wife and I was like I
8:15
can't afford to be the husband on a assistant roaster salary.
8:22
I'm sure could have made it work but not in Southern California
8:24
is tricky. So I was like help my friends
8:28
went like EMT school and started doing the fire stuff and I was
8:30
like well that seems stable. So DMT school worked on
8:36
ambulance for wire while fire Academy and I was uncomfortable
8:41
the entire time. Yeah, it's like the stability
8:48
was there, but like the personalities are very
8:50
different. I didn't wasn't passionate about
8:52
the job at all. I was just like, yeah, I was
8:55
like, I need to go back to coffee.
8:57
Yes, I started true love. I was like.
9:00
What did your wife, now wife say when you said, you know, I'm
9:03
going to leave the stability and go back to the thing I was doing
9:07
before? She was super supportive because
9:11
I was gone at time like the schedules supposedly 4896 you
9:17
work for two days and you're off for four, but you're usually
9:21
forced to work another day. So they gone like 3 days
9:23
straight with a baby on the way was not super enticing.
9:30
Like so like I think just all the time is one of our like
9:36
highest priorities just as a couple.
9:38
So like that being out the window with the baby on the way,
9:42
which is kind of like, I don't even care if it's left stable,
9:44
as long as you're, like, here to help.
9:45
It means more than you know a paycheck.
9:49
I like that hospitality was more of a positive work life balance
9:54
than another job because that's not something I usually early
10:00
hours, long days, craziness. And so that's that's cool.
10:05
So what? Where does true love come from?
10:08
You. You want to get back into
10:09
coffee, but you need, you know that you need something more
10:12
than just a job. What made you think, oh I can
10:15
start my own? So my brother-in-law, he had
10:23
some money wanted like invest in something like oh, we should do
10:25
a coffee company because I know you're passionate about that and
10:28
I want to invest in something. So I was like, oh, perfect.
10:31
This is like line up great. And then before like I already
10:37
quit my job and then he's like, actually I can't invest.
10:42
And I was like, well, go to the bank.
10:46
So the original goal, which honestly I'm really glad didn't
10:49
work out. We were originally just going to
10:50
start, just start with the Cafe and just like go for it.
10:55
But obviously I couldn't do that on my own, so the bank would
10:59
only give me $10,000. So I was like, we'll see what I
11:01
can do with that. So I found the used Lenny and
11:04
mini and then got a cart and just like good catering and pop
11:08
ups. And that been so good for me.
11:11
Met a lot of great people and then found this like pretty big
11:15
hole in the market. Like there's not a lot of coffee
11:18
carts that do like weddings and showers.
11:21
Like you definitely like swallow some pride and make like 10,000
11:24
nights in a lattes. But like people are so stoked on
11:28
it and the money is great in that.
11:32
And I think it's always going to be a part of my business,
11:35
honestly. Like because now that it's
11:38
gotten busier, I've been able to like pull braces from other
11:41
shops that need more hours and have them work some events for a
11:44
higher wage than they'd be normally making because the
11:46
margins are a lot better in the catering.
11:47
And so it started as like a, how do I pivot from this to like,
11:52
oh, there's actually this really cool community that can grow
11:55
quite a bit and helps other people out too.
11:59
So that's kind of out of necessity how true love started.
12:03
It was just like popping up ram spots and doing these like 4
12:07
year old birthday parties and. I.
12:11
Hear a lot that cafes and carts start roasting because they need
12:17
a better margin. But you had already had.
12:19
Roasting experience before you started the cart and so was that
12:23
always part of your plan and and when did you decide to start
12:27
really transitioning into that? So I just was looking at the
12:33
startup cost of roasting and then like, I simply cannot do
12:37
that. So I was like, maybe I'll just
12:40
do this cart and see kind of what falls into place.
12:44
So yeah, I just kind of gigging around as a cart.
12:47
I always wanted to be a roaster again, but I was like, I just
12:49
don't know how I was going to do that.
12:52
And then during the slow times, I reached out to Jeff from Bear
12:57
Coast and I was like, hey, do you need help at your warehouse?
12:59
Just like sending out orders, something like I need extra
13:02
money. So I was doing that for a little
13:04
bit and then he's like, hey, would you ever want to like
13:06
roast on the side for Bear Coast?
13:08
And I was like, sure, like extra money and get a roast again.
13:14
So I was doing that and I got the idea of like if you'd let me
13:17
toll roast and he was super for it.
13:21
But then that kind of came with this weird, like, oh true, let's
13:25
get a little busier. They're obviously getting
13:26
busier. How do I do both?
13:30
And he was really generous and like just people roasting.
13:33
I'll find a roaster for Bear Coast.
13:35
And so I'm still there for roasting.
13:37
And it's honestly, I don't know how else I would have done it.
13:41
Like being like a new company, cash flow is everything.
13:44
I couldn't imagine just like dropping a ton of money on a
13:48
facility. And so definitely help me give
13:51
it a start. And then like really low
13:53
overhead start growing wholesale.
13:54
Not like have too much stress and it's been great, but now
13:59
that things are getting busier I think getting a space on my
14:04
underoath soon would be it'd be nice to discuss it's.
14:09
It's always nice to have your own thing where you know where
14:12
everything is and it's yours and you set it up the way you want.
14:15
True Love has a unique, what I would say like kind of pin up,
14:20
tattoo artisty 1950s design vibe to it.
14:25
Where did that come from? Where did the name come from
14:27
then? How did you kind of settle on
14:28
some of that branding, like that vintage surf poster vibe, you
14:32
know? Yeah, I think in my, I guess
14:36
immediate area coffee can be really sleek and minimal and
14:42
which is really cool. But I just personally love like
14:47
old vintage matchboxes and like tiki bars and diners and it
14:52
always just feels super cozy to me.
14:54
And I was like, now I have the chance to brand my own company,
14:58
I want to do something a little bit different and kind of lean
15:01
into stuff that makes me feel good.
15:04
So I met this designer Lewis Frey and he's done pretty much
15:08
everything for me since I sent him like some matchboxes I like
15:11
and the name true love I came up with in high school because I
15:14
just like dreamed of having a little diner one day like but
15:18
sounds kind of like a nightmare now having a food.
15:21
So, but I was like, OK, the name would still work with coffee and
15:25
yeah, I just wanted like a cozy dinery vintage feeling coffee
15:30
brand. And he did a great job with the
15:32
design stuff and he's been great to work with.
15:35
Yeah, I'm going to share some photos of your logo and some of
15:38
the merch that you have. And I was thinking about how
15:41
when I was just going through your website recently, this,
15:45
this design works for any decade, any generation, you
15:49
know, it, it'll work 10 years from now, it'll work 100 years
15:53
behind us. Like it's just a, it's got that,
15:55
that style, that iconic looks. We did a great job.
15:57
You have a, you'll have. To let me.
16:01
Know kind of where you're at the process when I saw you a few
16:03
months ago you were talking about a possible new location
16:06
collaboration event and I see it's announced on your website
16:10
is coming soon but. What's What's the?
16:13
Status of a new cafe pop up space in San Juan Capistrano and
16:18
why the collaboration effort? Yeah.
16:22
So it's getting really close finally.
16:24
It's been April will be two years.
16:27
So the back and forth of the health department took the
16:29
longest and definitely learned a lot in that.
16:33
Wait two years since like this space came up?
16:36
Or two years since? Yeah.
16:38
Oh wow. They Yeah, and they've been
16:41
super understanding and super supportive.
16:44
But yeah, it's we're finally in construction now.
16:46
Plumbing zone electrical is done.
16:49
Tile was supposed to be done last night, but I was a half a
16:52
box shortened tile. So today I'm going to run down
16:56
to the tile store and see if I can get like literally 10 more
17:00
pieces of tile. So we're definitely on the
17:04
homestretch now, which is pretty amazing.
17:06
Yeah I actually met free now through hidden house and like
17:11
20-12 ish. Yeah, what is free now and
17:13
again? What is that just for people
17:15
listening? They do like kind of workwear,
17:18
western ish like menswear clothing.
17:20
So it's all designed here in San Juan and they manufacture in Los
17:25
Angeles and they sources like really high quality denim and
17:30
all here in the States or they do like leather in Italy and
17:33
Japanese and stuff. So really cool stuff.
17:36
Been a big fan of the clothes for a long time.
17:38
And then they got this new space in San Juan and they're like,
17:41
oh, you really got to have like a cafe in the front, like exit
17:44
through the cafe into the showroom.
17:46
And when they reached out to see if I'd be interested in that, I
17:48
was super excited because my goal was kind of always just to
17:52
focus on wholesale roasting. Like cafe would be cool, but
17:56
it's just, I didn't seem like I was in the cards for a little
17:58
while just because rent is crazy in Orange County and I'm not
18:03
planning on leaving Orange County.
18:04
So I was like, it's just, I feel like I'd be like a really robust
18:07
wholesale to kind of float the cafe for a long time.
18:10
And but collaborating like this definitely takes off the burden
18:14
of a huge, you know, rent payment and stuff.
18:18
So yeah, the subleasing from them made it really affordable
18:21
and doable. And, and I think to have the
18:23
customer be cool to lock in there and see more than just a
18:25
cafe, like see a really cool retail store, some cool clothes
18:28
and kind of like mixed-use vibe is not super common in Orange
18:32
County. It definitely came with some
18:34
challenges, but. I do think that's going to be
18:37
more common though. Yeah.
18:40
Like I think the idea collaboration shops, I mean,
18:43
over the past few years I've been in some cool plant store,
18:46
coffee shops, vintage clothing coffee shop, you know, records
18:51
coffee shop. But I think the what you
18:53
mentioned about the rent really makes especially here.
18:56
I mean, this is the first time I'm saying it's on the show.
19:00
But you know, I'm considering a move away from Southern
19:04
California in part because can I really accomplish the things I
19:08
want to accomplish if I'm paying this much for rent every month
19:12
and, you know, can I use that money elsewhere?
19:15
What would could I sacrifice this place that I love to live,
19:18
you know, in order to get something else?
19:20
And it's a question that I think my brother and I were talking
19:25
about this. He used to live here and he, he
19:27
moved this last year and it was this idea that housing and or
19:32
commercial rent for a business, because we both run our own
19:34
business, it takes up a significant percentage of our
19:38
daily thoughts because you're always, it's, it's more than you
19:43
realize because it's always just present as you're thinking
19:45
about, oh, I want to do this thing, but I have this much
19:48
money allocated. Elsewhere.
19:50
So how do you survive? So I think your collaboration is
19:54
is going to make a lot of sense. The the space I believe is so
19:58
hidden house, which is kind of a really well known coffee place
20:04
is right in that downtown off the train track heart of San
20:08
Juan. You're a little bit further
20:09
away. So if people are going to find
20:11
you in the future, where are they going?
20:13
So community Capistrano is the street that like runs right
20:16
through downtown. I'm on like the South end of
20:18
that. So there's like a Trader Joe's,
20:20
which is like pretty good landmark right across the street
20:24
from Trader Joe's. Perfect.
20:26
That's cool. Like old arch building, it would
20:28
be a good spot for people who are like live in or near San
20:32
Juan because it's really accessible.
20:35
There's free parking there and kind of out of the downtown
20:39
craziness. But I think more of the visitor
20:42
tourism stuff like Nelson's going to crush with that.
20:44
Like they're in such a big spot for that where a lot of the San
20:48
Juan locals, it's such on weekends, it's getting really
20:51
hard to get down there. So I think given the immediate
20:54
area neighbors another option, I think it'll be helpful.
20:58
There's always tension between needing tourism to survive and
21:03
also like, I want my own spaces back.
21:06
Yeah. I feel that as well now that
21:10
you've been, you've been doing true love for a couple of years.
21:14
You've kind of come to this point where you're doing the
21:16
thing you kind of wanted to do but didn't think was possible.
21:19
And are you finding that working for yourself is what you
21:22
expected being your own boss? It definitely shows you your
21:27
strengths and weaknesses. Like really intensified.
21:31
Like it's like, oh, I am not as organized as thought it was or
21:36
like, oh, I'm actually better at this.
21:39
And I thought I was going to be like it.
21:41
It just makes you feel very vulnerable.
21:43
But through that I've been able to lean on like other people in
21:46
my community that are great at things like sure, it would be
21:49
nice if I could have just figured out how to design my own
21:52
stuff and save money there, but like it wouldn't be that
21:55
special, you know? So now I get to like from the
21:57
beginning I produced, I wanted to be like, OK, I'd rather
21:59
allocate some money to like these very talented people in
22:01
the specific thing to help in these areas, not just take that
22:05
stress burden off of trying to do everything on my own.
22:08
But then there's all these things like I didn't know
22:11
anything about taxes and I'm still learning and like just
22:15
like non-stop learning, which I kind of enjoy it, but there's
22:19
definitely some stressful moments from like, wait, what is
22:21
this new? How did you see that new like
22:24
franchise saying where it's like for like LLCS and even small
22:29
businesses that like you need a file, like who is the primary
22:34
owner of it or else you get like $10,000 fine in two years in
22:36
prison or something like that. And I was like what is this?
22:40
Yeah, the the tax and franchise board emails, I get those.
22:45
I read most of them. We just kind of there's, you
22:51
know. And at some point especially.
22:52
When you're first starting, you're like, I don't make enough
22:54
money to even figure this out at some point.
22:58
So then you kind of, you got to work your way into it.
23:00
And I just, I hire, we, I hired an accountant that does our
23:05
taxes and it's just, I give him everything I have and he makes
23:08
sense of it somehow. And I don't understand.
23:13
You mentioned leaning on other people.
23:15
I know. You know, more recently, you've
23:18
brought some family in to help out, in particular your brother.
23:22
Correct me if I'm wrong. Dana.
23:24
Is that right? Yeah, Dana.
23:26
I knew I remembered it, but I was like, I don't want to.
23:29
Ask your job. Who I got a chance to meet just
23:33
briefly, and what has it been like working with with him?
23:36
And you know what motivated you to say I'm going to, I'm going
23:40
to open this up and we're going to do this as a family.
23:44
Yeah, it's been really good actually.
23:47
We're super different. Like he's very type A, very
23:52
structured comes from like hospitality background, A5 star
23:56
hotels like, and I've always been in like small businesses
24:00
coffee like so just you know, like the opposite ends.
24:04
I was like, I see a huge hole in like true Love's potential.
24:09
Like I kind of always focus to like sourcing and roasting and
24:14
brewing, like all of that sort of coffee.
24:16
I was like, this is what I love. But then like wholesale is
24:20
harder for me like because I'm just not a salesperson.
24:24
Like I'll go to shops and do a tasting if you like it, like
24:27
sweet. That's like as far as I go with
24:28
it. And it's worked for a couple
24:31
good accounts that I'm stoked on.
24:32
But like, there's just so much more potential in it if you're
24:36
organized and just, yeah, I don't know.
24:38
So just knowing you can help me with that.
24:39
It's been good. And then when the shop opens, I
24:42
think it's going to be a huge asset to like, scheduling and
24:46
managing employees because I am so passive.
24:50
Like I would just be a doormat and just work every day because
24:54
someone doesn't want to come into work.
24:56
And yeah, I need boundaries. And I think you'd definitely
24:58
help with that. I think his strengths definitely
25:02
complement my weaknesses. And then he's just eager to
25:05
learn, which is great too. That's like all I could ask for.
25:07
Somebody's eager to learn with a good attitude.
25:09
And that's what he has. So also his taste is so good.
25:14
Like he has no coffee background.
25:16
And they're like first tasting. I taste every Monday blind for
25:20
production cuppings with like other people's coffee on the
25:23
table because it helps me stay calibrated.
25:25
And I was like, don't like guessing the coffee, just like
25:27
tell me some notes and stuff. And he was like doing an amazing
25:31
job. I was pretty blown away.
25:33
No bad habits yet not. Yet exactly.
25:37
It's coming in fresh. He's going to learn your habits.
25:40
What about the the family dynamic?
25:43
I mean, do you get along as brothers?
25:44
Like I have two brothers. I don't know that we could work
25:46
together. I mean, we're all.
25:48
Real, but I think. It would be a challenge.
25:52
Yeah. I mean, I'm sure it's still new
25:55
that we're going to run into some stuff for sure.
25:57
But yeah, I think he's just, it helps that he's so green in the
26:03
coffee because he looks to me as like someone to teach him stuff.
26:08
Still think once we're more into his ballpark of like or ball, I
26:12
don't know, like in his field of like management and stuff, maybe
26:16
we'll start butting heads on some stuff.
26:17
But right now he's just trying to learn as much as possible.
26:19
So it's kind of like, yeah, I don't know, like I feel like
26:24
even outside of work, we're just both pretty easygoing people.
26:28
So it's he never really fought much growing up.
26:31
I'm the middle child. So I literally, I sit in the
26:35
middle seat growing up because my brothers would fight
26:37
constantly. So it's like I was kind of
26:39
peacekeeper growing up. So I think I just leaned into
26:42
that. I like it.
26:44
Yeah. So hopefully, hopefully it stays
26:45
cool, but. We'll find out if we see you in
26:48
the news, we'll know things went went off the road.
26:51
Exactly. Exactly.
26:55
So I've been asking my guests a lot lately just for for some of
26:59
their advice and their thoughts. And so I'm wondering if an
27:03
aspiring, you know, person came up to you and asked what should
27:07
I know about coffee or the coffee industry that you wish
27:10
you had known? You know what?
27:12
What would you tell them? I feel like coming up in coffee,
27:17
I didn't realize how like inclusive the community is.
27:22
I thought it was kind of like every shop was in competition.
27:25
We can be with each other. And I felt that way for kind of
27:29
a while. It was a bummer, honestly into
27:32
like true love because then now being like, OK, like who else do
27:36
I know? Because I need help with a
27:39
million questions and equipment and stuff.
27:41
So then I kind of started leaning on like other shops
27:43
around me asking questions and everyone was so open and
27:46
supportive. And I don't know like people who
27:49
I should technically be in direct competition with, like
27:51
Jeff from Bear Coast or Matt and Gold Lantern.
27:55
Like we share equipment constantly and are like if my
28:00
machines down, they let me wonder.
28:02
And there's like it's everyone just wants to like help each
28:05
other out and like have friends and connections in the
28:08
community. It's like I'd say just lean on
28:10
the people around you and support each other and taste
28:13
other people's coffee. Don't just keep drinking your
28:15
own. Like, I don't know, I think it's
28:17
just such a great space full of wonderful people and just get to
28:21
know them. And, and I'm preaching to myself
28:24
because it's so easy for me just to stay in a warehouse by
28:28
myself. Like, but like, yeah, just like
28:31
invite people to your production tastings, go to other people's.
28:34
Like it's so helpful for everyone to be tasting their
28:36
coffees and building these connections with other small
28:40
businesses because everyone needs help, you know?
28:42
Like things come up constantly and it's so amazing when you
28:45
could lend a hand to somebody or they could return the favorites.
28:51
It's cool. It's not it's not a competition.
28:53
There's plenty of coffee to go around.
28:55
And honestly, I don't think people care.
28:58
I think people want to go to a shop they like or try a new
29:01
spot. Like, it's not like you're
29:03
pulling anything away from anyone else having to shop so.
29:07
That's advice I often give to myself as well, it to lean on
29:11
other people because I would rather just try to force myself
29:15
to do everything and it never works out in the way that I
29:19
hoped. Is there anything I didn't ask
29:21
you about today, about true love, about you, about, you
29:25
know, anything that you really wanted to share?
29:29
I know you did. You had some great questions.
29:32
How do you define true love? How's that?
29:35
That's a more meta question in general.
29:38
Not the company, but true love as a concept.
29:42
Yeah, I love it. Warm, sweet, kind of the phrase
29:47
that I like thought of with the company.
29:49
It's kind of like the little motto and I think it kind of is
29:53
fun with coffee too. But just like being selfless and
30:01
patient and caring is like all you could do and coffee and, and
30:09
actual love. Like just, I don't know, like
30:13
for me, I definitely have people pleasing tendencies, but like if
30:18
I were to do everything my own way all the time, I would be so
30:21
unhappy. But if I could like, I don't
30:25
know, be kind to someone else or like help someone else or
30:29
something, it like brings me joy and obviously helps them too.
30:32
It's like that's kind of something I've learned about
30:36
personal life, but just trying to apply that to business has
30:38
been super fun. And it's like kind of breaks
30:41
down that tension between like other business owners and stuff
30:46
just being like, oh, but he's reaching out to me to help me
30:48
with something or like, I don't know.
30:50
It's, I don't know. I think that's just been living
30:54
up to the name. I gave my own coffee shop
30:56
details. I try to.
30:59
I talk about this show being a platform to uplift other
31:02
people's stories and I certainly get value and a lot of
31:07
inspiration talking to everyone. But I did have to.
31:10
Learn before this show and then other business ventures that
31:15
just because I'm offering doesn't mean I should expect
31:17
something in return. And I think when I was younger,
31:20
maybe there was this, oh, I helped you and you didn't help
31:23
me, you know, attitude that I brought to some things.
31:26
And what I've learned now is that's not how the world works.
31:30
So now I just offer because I know that somewhere down the
31:32
line someone will help me out or will, you know, be there when I
31:36
need them if I reach out. But it isn't a proactive thing.
31:40
You can't just be taking all the time or wanting something in
31:43
return. It's not a one to one exchange.
31:45
It's a if you see a need and and you can help you help and and,
31:49
you know, hope that it comes back around and and assume that
31:52
it will because that's a good thing.
31:55
If you are out doing a little tour of Southern California, you
32:00
stop and just a coffee shop. What are you going to order?
32:04
I love to see a pour over menu, which is getting harder to find
32:09
unfortunately, especially like if someone roasts, I feel like
32:13
it's really great to be able to try like I think only drink
32:20
coffee, like drip coffee. I'll do espresso like here and
32:23
there, but I just love filter coffee.
32:26
So oftentimes like the badge brew is like the crowd pleaser,
32:31
which is fine, but it's really great when you see like a pour
32:34
over menu and get a, you know, ask the Brista about their
32:38
favorite coffees. And that's my favorite thing in
32:40
the world. It's not that Daydream has a
32:43
really cool drink called A1 and son, which is like kind of a
32:46
traditional one in one, a split shot and then but the other one
32:49
is like cortado with the braces choice of whatever they want to
32:53
put in it, often times like a some sort of bitters and a
32:56
little syrup or something. And it's awesome.
32:58
We put little sprinkles on it sometimes.
33:00
It's incredible. One and one one and fun is a
33:05
good name. Yeah, I was going to.
33:06
Say that could apply. To a lot of ways that my brain
33:09
could go down a real dark rabbit hole real fast.
33:13
Lee, I really appreciate you taking some time away from your
33:17
introverted warehouse time and chatting with us.
33:21
I certainly am excited to see, one, how this new shop comes
33:26
together and, and two, I'm just, I'm glad that having met you a
33:30
few times that a good person is having some good things
33:33
happening to them. And so thanks for being on the
33:36
show. Well.
33:38
Thank you so much. Yeah, it's been great and
33:40
definitely got me out of my comfort zone and glad I did it.
33:45
What? What's the name of the pup?
33:47
I forgot to ask earlier I think. Ruth.
33:50
Ruth, that's a very adult grandmother name.
33:56
Yeah, she as a puppy was very much giving that vibe, but she's
34:00
become a wild animal in her teens.
34:15
OK, I'll give you a few key takeaways here, but head to
34:19
roastwestcoast.com to see much more in the newsletter.
34:24
Lee's path to coffee began with a passion for learning.
34:27
His persistence and fearlessness and willingness to ask questions
34:30
at his local coffee shop, Hidden House, eventually inspired them
34:34
to ask him to step in on a day when they needed help because
34:37
they trusted he'd been putting in the work.
34:40
At one point he went to LA to expand his craft and learn the
34:43
other side of the business, but what he gained in new
34:46
experiences he lost in quality of life.
34:50
He made the choice to make the drive back down the five and
34:54
return home. He still had the desire to be
34:57
more financially stable, which led him to EMT school and he
35:00
took a turn being a first responder.
35:03
But the fit wasn't there either. He had to acknowledge his home
35:08
was in coffee. Starting true love became his
35:11
option for both making enough money to survive and spend
35:15
quality time with his family. But there were still financial
35:18
constraints, and the fact that he'd already quit his job forced
35:21
him to retool his original coffee shop plan.
35:25
Instead, he started with a coffee cart, working pop ups and
35:28
catering gigs. It ended up being the best thing
35:31
for him and his business because he found a hole in the
35:34
marketplace that offered room to grow.
35:37
Now, with his Cafe, he's collaborating with Free Note
35:40
Coffee Clothing on the space, which takes some of the
35:43
financial burden off that would have weighed on Lee had he tried
35:46
to open the cafe on his own, especially at Orange County
35:49
rental rates. Through this process, he's
35:52
learned that working for himself really taught him what he did
35:56
best, and of course, also his weaknesses in a very intense
35:59
way, and he felt vulnerable. The industry is more supportive
36:04
than he realized at first. He's leaned into, well, leaning
36:09
on others for help and they've been there to hold him up and
36:12
push him forward in the same way.
36:16
He's now there as a pillar for those around him.
36:19
Finally, the ethos of true love. Both the coffee company and
36:23
Lee's loves in life are to be warm, sweet and kind.
36:27
It's actually how he signs his emails.
36:30
That's our show for today. I'm actually on my way up to San
36:33
Juan Capistrano to check out the new true love space.
36:37
They are so close to opening the doors to the cafe, to the
36:41
community and beyond. Just one last inspection to go,
36:46
and we wish them good luck. I want to thank Lee for his
36:50
patience in me for getting this show out and for sharing his
36:53
time story and dropping some knowledge on us.
36:57
You can find a longer recap in our newsletter at
36:59
roastwestcoast.com. And be sure to follow True Love
37:02
on Instagram at True Love Coffee Co while you're on your phone.
37:07
And we both know that you are. It really helps us if you tap
37:10
the follow button on this show or give us a few stars on
37:14
whatever platform you're listening to us on.
37:17
If you want to go beyond and support the Coffee People
37:19
podcast, the best way is to follow our newsletter at
37:23
roastwestcoast.com or tell a friend about us.
37:26
I'm always telling my friends about Rostar coffee packaging
37:29
found at rostar.com. There this podcasts presenting
37:34
sponsor and will help you tell the big story of your small
37:37
business. They've been an incredible
37:39
support in enabling us to develop this platform where we
37:43
share the stories of coffee people.
37:45
Check them out on rostar.com. We've also been supported by
37:50
some great coffee industry partners, Zumbar Coffee and tea,
37:53
Maria Coffee and Cape Horn Green coffee importers, Crossings
37:57
Coffee and Assea Coffee Source Ignite Coffee Company, Ascend
38:00
Coffee Roasters, me and my uncle coffee craft 42 roasters,
38:05
relative coffee and cozy canine coffee.
38:09
Thank you for listening and sharing this podcast, asking
38:12
questions and being coffee curious.
38:15
This show, the coffee people podcast is part of the roast
38:18
West Coast coffee network. This episode is was has been
38:22
written, produced, researched and recorded by me.
38:24
Ryan Wolt. Wherever you find yourself
38:27
today, I hope it is with a fine cup of coffee.
38:30
Thank you for listening to us tell the stories of coffee
38:33
people. Any idea?
38:46
I didn't want to ask on the show, but on your timeline.
38:52
Construction should be done early next month and then
38:56
assuming the health department is nice to me, I would say, I
39:00
mean, I could be open by December.
39:04
That'd be amazing. Just to, I don't know, get some
39:09
sales, those like Christmas sales and stuff would be super
39:13
helpful. But I've just tried to learn to
39:16
just roll with it. It's been like the original
39:20
launch date was supposed to be August of last year.
39:22
So I'm already way past that. So I'm just like, hey, if it
39:25
opens right on. Oh my God.