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Coffee People: Dani Taube, Roastar · Coffee People Podcast

0:04
The Coffee People Podcast is presented by Rostar Coffee
0:07
Packaging. Rostar is the digital printing
0:09
company that makes custom printed packaging for coffee
0:13
products. They create packaging that make
0:15
even small roasters look like a really big deal.
0:18
At rostar.com you'll find out about their fast turnaround
0:22
time, high quality product, and low printing minimums.
0:25
It's what separates them from the rest of the industry.
0:28
Rostar will quickly become your favorite source for custom
0:31
American made product packaging. They work with small, mid and
0:34
large coffee roasters, so if you're ready to upgrade your
0:37
coffee packaging, go to rostar.com to learn more and
0:41
connect with the team. Link in this podcast Show notes
1:08
Hey, good morning everyone. Welcome to the Coffee People
1:11
Podcast, which is part of the Roast West Coast Coffee Network
1:15
and presented by Roast Star Coffee Packaging.
1:18
If you roast great coffee and you want to showcase it in a
1:21
great looking package, go to roastar.com to learn more.
1:25
I'm Ryan Walt and this is the Coffee Podcast where we meet
1:29
interesting people from all corners of the coffee industry.
1:32
Today I'm touching base with Row Star's Danny Tauby.
1:35
She is a marketing coordinator with a passion for
1:38
sustainability and packaging innovation.
1:41
Danny is someone I've had the pleasure of chatting with on
1:44
several occasions as my collaboration with the Row Star
1:47
team has grown and is, dare I say it, a friend.
1:51
A friend that I learned a lot more about during this podcast
1:54
interview. I also learned that sometimes
1:57
it's harder for me to interview someone I already know.
2:00
During our recording session, it was easy to forget to do my job
2:03
as an interviewer and I would just get lost in conversation.
2:07
So I warn you now that I talk way too much in this episode.
2:11
Before we get started, I do want to define a phrase that comes up
2:14
several times early in the pod. Early on, we're chatting about
2:17
recycling, specifically for things like plastic bags or
2:21
coffee packaging that can be commercially recycled but aren't
2:24
supposed to go into your bins at home.
2:27
We refer to products that are stored drop offs, which is just
2:30
a reference to those collection bins that you find outside of a
2:33
grocery or department store where you can drop those to be
2:36
recycled or reused. You've probably seen them there
2:38
next to the automated doors. And with that, I think we're
2:42
ready. Today, in honor of the Women's
2:44
World Cup, I'm drinking coffee from Madison, Wisconsin's Just
2:48
Coffee KOA. It's their Wake the Flock Up
2:51
Medium Roast, which they roasted to benefit the Forward Madison
2:54
Football Club. I brewed a single cup this
2:57
morning and a Calida Wave Brewer which just keeps challenging me
3:01
to succeed with. I'm really struggling, but I
3:04
know I'll get there. Luckily this coffee is so good
3:07
my own failings as a Barista are dampered in the final flavor.
3:12
I hope you're out there enjoying a full mug of something loud and
3:15
vibrant and as unwavering as I am, because it is time for
3:19
another Coffee People podcast conversation, this time with
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Danny Toby of Rostar Coffee Packaging.
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I usually just start the show by saying, hey, welcome to the
3:45
show, Danny. Let's get started.
3:48
This is a new episode of Coffee People.
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Would you mind saying your name and where you work and what your
3:55
role there is for everyone listening?
3:57
And if you remember, maybe you could share your favorite ninja,
4:00
turtle or superhero from when you were a kid.
4:04
My name is Danny Toby. I work at Rostar as a marketing
4:08
coordinator. My favorite superhero was
4:12
definitely Rogue from X-Men. I'm a huge X-Men fan.
4:17
Really, I'd have to think like through my brain to see if I
4:21
remember that one. She has white or Gray in her
4:25
hair from some trauma and she flies.
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That was the biggest thing is that she could fly.
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Do you have a superhero skill that you wish you had if you
4:34
could choose one? 100% would be breathing
4:37
underwater. Oh, really?
4:39
Breathing underwater? I get that, but only because I
4:42
can't swim. So, like, it'd be nice if I fell
4:45
off the boat. To be able to survive, I think
4:48
would be a nice thing. If I could live underwater, I
4:51
would, so that's why I'd like to just breathe as long as
4:54
possible, not have to worry about possibly dying.
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So yeah. Yeah, very cool.
4:59
I would like that if the water was coffee, then I could just
5:01
keep drinking from underneath. I could work that out.
5:06
Oh my God, the caffeine. Oh yeah, but it's just part of
5:09
my bloodstream at this point. It never ends.
5:13
I am excited that you're here. You and I've talked several
5:15
times and it's. I always enjoy.
5:17
Just catch it. Like even now we just spoke
5:18
chatter for 20 minutes about, you know, nothingness, you know,
5:21
before getting into this recording.
5:23
Rostar is obviously a great supporter of this podcast.
5:27
I really wanted to just chat with you and learn a little bit
5:30
more about you and in particular some of the sustainability stuff
5:33
we were recently talking about at SCA because that's something
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that I get really passionate about.
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Before we get into all that, I want to ask about you.
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Before Rostar, you probably had a life.
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I'm assuming you did things. What was your life leading up to
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Rostar? And do you have like a coffee
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memory that kind of got you started that you remember even
5:56
before you got into this industry?
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Like, yeah, this is kind of interesting.
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This is something that's going to be part of my life.
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Yeah, so I've been very blessed, I would say, in the way that I
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have done a lot of things in my life.
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Actually, it's kind of a running joke here at Rostar that
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whenever anyone asks about something, I come up with some
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experience. I've had my past and everyone's
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like, what have you not done? Like, what haven't you done?
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I have a lot of experience in different things.
6:27
For example, I have a background in graphic design.
6:30
I have a degree in graphic design and visual
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communications. I have a history with
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merchandising and screen printing.
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I started my own business in Madison, WI in personal training
6:43
and nutritional training, and then also owned a tattoo shop
6:47
with my exhusband at that time for many years that focused on a
6:50
mission of conservation and sustainability.
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So I've kind of done everything. And then during COVID, my life
6:58
changed a lot and I ended up landscaping for a little while.
7:01
And then I ended up working at an organic grocery store
7:05
downtown Wausau, after I moved home.
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Yeah. Then after things kind of opened
7:09
back up a bit, I found out about ROW Star and I'm very happy to
7:13
be here because it seems like the role that they needed to
7:17
fill was full of all of those crazy random Danny skills.
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So here I am. I was going to ask, is that what
7:25
your resume was like? We need someone to do marketing
7:28
and sustainability and you're like, well, I had a tattoo shop
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and was a landscaper, so I know all those worlds in between.
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I first got hired for customer service and then actually I
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asked just like I always do, a ton of questions and it happened
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to be about sustainability mostly.
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And then that actually led to us forming our sustainability
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committee. So I kind of fell into
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conservation to hear from just my own passion.
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And yeah, they kind of started. Kicked us off, I would say.
8:02
Not that they weren't already working on things.
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Will, the owner here is very cognizant of that as an issue
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and was working hard on that as well.
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So we just partner really well together.
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Well, it's also an issue that is a rabbit hole that is harder
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than necessarily just going with the cheapest, fastest, easiest
8:21
way of things, and so you need somebody who.
8:24
Not only is intelligent about it, but cares and gives a shit
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because there's going to be moments where you're like, I
8:29
could just do it a little bit easier and it's still going to
8:32
be good, but but maybe not as good or not as sustainable.
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And so you need that person driving that shit, that part of
8:38
the ship in the company. It's just such a huge landscape
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and in packaging, which is inherently wasteful to some
8:46
extent, it's it's the thing that we that holds the thing that we
8:49
want and then then what do you do with it when you're done?
8:54
I have a drawer filled with coffee bags because I like the
8:58
design, but also because I just can't.
9:00
I don't really know what to do with them, you know, I use them
9:02
for all sorts of things. They're like my little trash in
9:04
the car or, you know, whatever. What about coffee?
9:07
Do you? I mean, are you a coffee
9:08
drinker? Did you, do you remember
9:10
drinking coffee in your previous life?
9:11
Was you know, how did how did coffee fit into your world?
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So when I was a kid, I knew a different form of coffee.
9:22
I would drink coffee with my grandmother and my grandfather
9:25
all the time at home. You know, maybe it was just a
9:27
little bit here and there, but then my dad would get
9:30
cappuccinos from like QuikTrip, you know, like the machine
9:33
coffees. So that's what I knew about
9:35
coffee for the longest time. But when my grandfather, when I
9:39
got a little bit older, my grandfather took me to a place
9:42
called the Daily Grind in Winchester, VA, where I lived at
9:45
the time. And I remember I feel like that
9:48
changed my world because. Going into a coffee shop and
9:54
getting that environment, understanding that there's
9:56
actually like an espresso machine and beans and smelling
9:59
those things, but then also the ambience of the environment just
10:06
felt so cozy and homey and I was obsessed with coffee shops.
10:11
Past that point, honestly, I'm. This might be like blasphemy to
10:15
say, but I'm probably more into the coffee shop than I am the
10:17
coffee at most for me personally.
10:20
No, that's not blasphemous. I mean, I think it's a whole
10:22
experience. I come from a, you know, the
10:24
restaurant side and designing and building restaurants.
10:27
So I love like the layout and the design.
10:30
And why did you do this thing? You know to you know what makes
10:33
a coffee shop feel like home as opposed to a shop where they
10:37
seemingly did everything right and it's nice and clean, but it
10:39
just doesn't have that thing. Yeah, but unique.
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That makes you feel that warmth when you come in and I'm just
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going to soapbox and say I think it's the people that generally
10:50
that makes the difference. But you know, not always,
10:52
sometimes it's just you know just a design issue your your
10:55
trends change at Rostar, you guys, one of the things that we
11:00
talked about at SCA in particular was your new
11:04
sustainability efforts and I really want to get into that,
11:07
but would you mind kind of talking a little bit just about?
11:11
The types of coffee packaging that maybe the company was known
11:14
for before and then how with your new role and the role that
11:17
you're in now that has been shifting and adjusting and how
11:20
the sustainability piece comes into it.
11:23
I think in my maybe historic, limited historical coffee
11:29
packaging education, you know, I think it's usually comes in a
11:32
bag. It looks relatively recyclable.
11:36
We often brown now. We've a lot, lot of cool designs
11:38
and things and you guys do, I mean we have our design feature,
11:41
but there's usually a liner in it that means that it's not
11:43
recyclable or event of some kind like where the baits recyclable
11:47
but the vent is not. There's all these little complex
11:49
things and this question is growing.
11:52
Apologies, but what, what, what, what was your goal with this
11:56
role like coffee packaging was here and we're trying to move it
11:59
a little bit this way. Does that make sense?
12:03
Yeah, I think so. I I think one reason that I've
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experienced so much in my life as far as jobs are concerned is
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because I love to learn and I have to be passionate about what
12:17
I do and it has to align with my values.
12:20
Even though I don't have an extensive background in biology,
12:25
I was always into the environment conservation.
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It just was a very big passion of mine.
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Even at our tattoo shop we donated to Mission Blue to in
12:37
efforts to conserve the coral reefs that have been dying.
12:43
So when I first started the idea or when I first worked at
12:49
Rostar, I felt like I had to find something positive because
12:53
just on the overall, you're like, oh this is plastic
12:55
packaging and it's like, So what happens?
12:58
Like how? You know is there waste that
13:02
comes from production, is there waste that comes from you know
13:06
our suppliers like how, how, how does this all play into this.
13:10
And of course I was new to the packaging industry at that time.
13:13
So I think some of those questions really led me to
13:16
investigate not only inside of our company, which of course
13:21
they had better answers to because they were more
13:23
experienced than I was, but also in our community we've.
13:29
Are known for having a niche in the industry as far as working
13:33
with entrepreneurs and small coffee shops or coffee
13:36
businesses and roasters that need a smaller minimum.
13:42
That's kind of our first and foremost was a smaller minimum
13:44
made locally so that you know you can order 500 bags versus
13:50
5000 or 25,000 to get the price point that you needed.
13:54
Some people cannot just can't do that.
13:57
On top of the fact that ordering those 25,000 from overseas may
14:01
not be, you know, part of the value system for that company as
14:05
well as far as emissions and just the transportation and the
14:11
way that they're made and what they're made out of.
14:13
So we kind of first and foremost fill the nation side of the
14:16
industry to be more cognizant of making smaller.
14:22
Quantities more available to our customer and being able to adapt
14:27
quickly to the customer's needs. That's kind of what we're taking
14:31
forward inside of our sustainability initiative as
14:34
well as right now we are changing to a very, very rapidly
14:41
changing environment inside of the sustainability efforts
14:43
inside of the country. Even recycling is largely
14:47
unregulated in America and, and honestly, worldwide.
14:52
People or I should say organizational efforts have been
14:55
becoming more concise and clear and regulated as well.
14:59
So we are keeping a close eye on those changes.
15:04
And we have also for the last two years if not more have been
15:08
doing our own investigations into a lot of those programs to
15:11
make sure that we know exactly what's happening to the
15:16
packaging that we're deeming to be recyclable or.
15:19
Even our plastic packaging, how is this being filtered into the
15:22
landfills? You know, if, if someone's
15:25
dropping off at store drop off, where does it actually go?
15:28
And if someone's putting a recyclable logo on something,
15:32
what does that actually mean? Can someone just put that on
15:34
their design and just say it's recyclable?
15:36
Does that mean that it's a contaminant inside of that
15:38
recycling stream? We're finding out a lot of those
15:41
answers are usually not as beneficial as we think.
15:46
Not that recycling is bad. That that is not the issue.
15:50
We recycling is an effort. That's a challenge and we will
15:54
continue to fight the good fight in that way for for a long time.
15:58
But it's just not. It's a challenge and it's not
16:02
easy and straightforward, you know, especially with store
16:05
dropoff or recycling efforts like first and foremost for
16:08
coffee packaging and flexible packaging, there's not an easy
16:11
way to recycle something that flat and flexible.
16:16
You know, curbside recyclable is rigid plastic that gets
16:19
categorized through a machine. And if any plastic bags are put
16:24
into that machine, they can get caught, they can disrupt the
16:28
sorting process and then also can hinder the safety of the
16:33
employees. They're trying to fix that
16:36
material. That's actually there was an
16:38
interesting story in our local paper about that where at the
16:41
recycling plant here. If you threw your recycling into
16:45
the bin inside of a plastic bag, which a lot of people would do
16:48
because it's usually in a bag and a bin in their house, they
16:51
just tie it up, throw it in there.
16:53
If you did that, it was easier for them to, like, have like a
16:56
automatic arm that would sort those bags out at the recycling
16:59
plant and just send them to the landfill, right?
17:01
Because it was too much labor or work or whatever to deal with
17:05
sorting them once they got there.
17:07
And if the bags went through, they would gum up the works and
17:09
they'd get stuck behind and and and backed up.
17:12
So. I just want to clarify, it
17:14
sounds like to me what you're saying is it as a company, not
17:16
just as you personally. You've been creating a product
17:20
for a long time, doing a good job of it.
17:22
People like the packaging and the, you know, all the all that
17:25
fun stuff. But you're starting to say or
17:27
you have been saying it's not just our responsibility to
17:31
create this thing that we think is a great product or has the
17:34
ability to be recycled. You're actually taking stock of
17:37
like where is this packaging going and?
17:39
The the end life of the package after it's long gone from the
17:44
Rostar facility. Oh, 100%.
17:47
So something that's a challenge for us is that we're not only
17:52
educating and connecting with our customers, we're also
17:56
needing to connect and educate their customers and help them to
18:02
help our direct customers be able to speak directly to their
18:06
customers. That sounded a little bit more
18:08
complicated than I wanted it to, but.
18:11
I think it makes sense. You know you're you're providing
18:14
information to these, these clients of yours, but
18:17
realistically the end user is the customer buying from them
18:20
and so if they don't understand the message, it's all for not,
18:24
right? So how can we make it easy for
18:27
them to get this point across that this package is either A
18:30
recyclable or B not? And here's what you can do with
18:33
it. Exactly so we want to be clear
18:36
and concise. And we also want to know and be
18:40
confident in our language and in the actions that we're having
18:46
those consumers and customers take.
18:49
So for example store drop off recently there was an
18:53
investigation in the ABC News about Walmart's and targets.
18:58
They used a tracker, they placed trackers and I think it was like
19:01
50 bags and placed them in store drop offs around the country.
19:06
And they found that forty of those bags ish.
19:09
This is like not specific, but this is a roundabout.
19:14
About forty of those bags were sent and found in landfills.
19:18
Walmart and Target specifically have been removed from the list
19:21
of store drop off, but we had been along with a BC been doing
19:27
our own investigation to that same type of situation.
19:30
As we were kind of going down the stream and developing a
19:34
store drop off material, we wanted to make sure like how do
19:38
we make sure that this is going to be the best possible resource
19:43
for our customers and for the environment.
19:46
And so again it's it's it's a challenge inside of the industry
19:52
and it's a challenge inside of recycling in general because
19:55
that education. Needs to come from the top and
19:59
filter to every single person. So for example at some of those
20:02
facilities store drop off as a as a program is through the
20:10
business as an entity like so through Walmart or through
20:13
target. So as a headquarter, not like
20:16
each specific location. For example, there's like a
20:19
plastic buyer that will buy plastic from Target.
20:21
They have a contract together but it's also targets
20:24
responsibility at that part. At that point to come back and
20:26
say manager please make sure that you know this employee
20:30
knows that we need to collect these and they need to go to
20:33
said warehouse and then be delivered and bailed to the that
20:37
person. So even knowing that, like,
20:40
there's no really easy way of someone saying like, oh, this is
20:43
what short drop off actually is, Sometimes you can just assume
20:47
like, oh, that's a positive thing happening and then I'm
20:49
just gonna do it and walk away and just feel good that I did my
20:53
part. But when you look through, it's
20:54
like there's a lot of factors at play inside of those types of
20:58
programs. The nearest store drop off,
21:01
which is for us mostly Amazon bags because we use reusable
21:07
bags at grocery and stuff. So we don't have a lot of bags
21:09
in that that way, but like packaging from shipping things
21:11
that we've ordered. The the nearest store drop off
21:14
is like a mile and a half away and it doesn't sound like much.
21:18
I mean I can ride my bike over there or walk over there, but as
21:21
these this packaging builds up over time and you kind of start
21:24
to see it, the the annoyance as a human is it seems so minimal.
21:29
But the fact that I can't just throw it in the bin outside of
21:31
my house is one step in between that bag getting into the
21:35
recycling stream and you know ending up in a landfill and.
21:41
You know, maybe I'm cleaning up the yard and I find my box with
21:44
all the packages of bags and one there, it's too full and I'm
21:46
like I'll just throw this one out and you know, take the rest
21:49
in when I get there. There's all these little
21:52
roadblocks to recycling. I'm wondering are there ways to
21:57
bypass that system entirely? I mean are there non, you know,
22:02
store drop off recycling that I can just throw in the bin?
22:04
I mean. Are there other types of new
22:07
packaging coming out in the market that are more recyclable
22:09
or easily recyclable or somehow or reusable in a way that as the
22:14
end user who's wants to brew his coffee and then forget that
22:18
there was any other effort that had to be put in?
22:21
Not that I do that, everyone. But you know, that makes life a
22:24
lot easier at 8:00 o'clock in the morning or whatever time
22:26
you're up. You know, where's Rostar moving
22:29
towards in that regard? Or studying, or thinking about
22:32
trying to get to a point where? You feel confident that the
22:35
product you are, you've given your clients all the tools they
22:40
could possibly have to make sure that they have a sustainable
22:42
product. So that's a great question as we
22:48
have been doing a lot of research based on our customers
22:52
requests. We get a lot of requests about
22:56
composable product and a want for curbside recycling.
23:02
We have seen that maybe the end of life of these products isn't
23:08
necessarily the only thing to consider.
23:11
That being said, we have been working on a more composable bag
23:16
product for flexible packaging and then we did also have our
23:20
tin cans that we released last year that are 100% curbside
23:24
recyclable. Those we have.
23:26
And then something we've been doing a little bit more digging
23:29
into is how do we make everything more environmentally
23:34
friendly. I think for the longest time,
23:36
because so many of our customers have to deal with changing
23:39
regulations inside of packaging and plastic, there's been a lot
23:44
of talk about the plastic end of life, parts of recycling.
23:48
At the same time, we've been working with a consultant to
23:52
work more on our carbon emission footprint for every single one
23:56
of our products, not just the recyclable products.
23:59
And then also we have worked with a partner who is taking our
24:04
plastic materials that are not recyclable and turning them into
24:08
clean energy here in Wisconsin at a local energy plant.
24:14
That's kind of cool. I don't mean to assume you know,
24:17
but how do you take a piece of plastic and turn it into energy
24:20
that can be used again? I don't know the entire in and
24:24
outs. Let's get that guy on the phone.
24:26
Yes, he's pretty cool and we are touring there soon.
24:30
But we have started that relationship.
24:34
They have figured out a way to pelletize the non recyclable
24:39
bags and remove some of the contaminants from those bags
24:44
that then turn those plastic bags into a cleaner energy
24:49
source than fossil fuel. So for example, in a local plant
24:53
in Wisconsin, here they are because the plant was once
24:57
fossil fuel. This technology is easily
25:00
transferable to this cleaner energy, So they're hoping to
25:05
build this relationship with multiple other plants in not
25:10
just the state but the country to be able to provide this
25:14
cleaner energy source and then also divert all of this landfill
25:18
waste from or all of this waste from the landfill.
25:21
So it's a big deal and it's in. That's how easy it is to get
25:25
focused so much on the end of life and recyclability and and
25:29
compostability, which we still are and we are still developing
25:32
those tools. We also still want to remember
25:35
that the larger picture here also is to reduce waste overall,
25:39
and that's what we're working to do.
25:42
That's an interesting concept that I think it's lost.
25:44
You've mentioned the term end of life of a plastic product a few
25:47
times. There's also a lot of steps
25:50
along the way where maybe it's not the best, most perfect
25:53
answer. But it's an improvement and it's
25:55
a it's pushing the baseline forward towards sustainability,
25:59
which is important I think not just in coffee but in all kinds
26:03
of other industries like things we never think about.
26:06
There are ways to improve. The wine industry right now is
26:09
going through a reckoning with their bottles, where they're
26:10
making the bottles with a better glass that is just as strong and
26:14
stable, but is actually thinner. So it improves sustainability by
26:18
1 using less product but two. Less weight means less
26:22
transportation effort, less fossil fuels being burned,
26:26
transporting it, and a thinner glass means that you can
26:29
actually compact and store things in a smaller space.
26:32
It's just a. It's a whole list of things you
26:34
would have never expected. You know, I remember being in
26:37
design school and learning that the type of font you use will
26:40
determine how much ink is used, which will then determine how
26:44
expensive a book is to be printed, or a booklet or a
26:46
poster. But on the other side of that,
26:49
developing a font that uses less ink or has microscopic little
26:54
blank spaces that you can't even see because your brain just
26:57
fills them in, will use less ink and therefore be less impactful
27:00
and little things like that and. In all the little touch points
27:04
we have in our life every day are are just shocking.
27:07
You know like when you really and exciting and and kind of
27:09
like wow, I never would have thought of that as a way to
27:11
improve sustainability. What we're really getting at is
27:14
the landscape has changed and the technology has changed.
27:17
And as companies or as individuals, we have to find our
27:23
lane in it and kind of veering back to Rostar Coffee has
27:27
changed, you know, maybe. That's an Rowstar's origin,
27:31
which we learned from Nick Schmidt on an earlier show.
27:34
Kind of got like the brand really got launched at a coffee
27:38
festival where you won an award for design and packaging that
27:43
led to this entire coffee focus. But as coffee changes like we're
27:49
in the, you know what some would say the end of the third way of
27:52
going into the 4th, if that's even a needed term.
27:54
Chris O'Brien might argue with us if you're listening, Chris.
27:58
But you also have to change with the needs of your clients and
28:00
the demands for sustainable packaging have also increased
28:03
from customers like me, which then to customers like your
28:07
clients, the the roasters or the the brands themselves, You're
28:14
like, is there a question there? My question is, is, is how do
28:18
you continually moderate or how do you continually adapt to the
28:24
demands of your customers which are changing faster and faster
28:27
every year? You know, I'll take it back.
28:30
Even when we were standing together at SCA for a few
28:32
minutes, you weren't necessarily talking about your Rostar stuff.
28:36
We were together looking at other packaging companies and
28:39
seeing what they were doing around the space.
28:41
So how do you kind of keep track of all that stuff while also
28:44
doing your job? That's such a good question.
28:47
I hope my bosses are listening right now.
28:52
I'm sure we can get them the link.
28:53
Yeah. No, it's a really good question
28:56
because that's a, it's a huge challenge, especially because
29:03
there are so many people doing so many things and I think
29:06
everyone's trying, most people are trying to do the right
29:10
thing. So you want to look at what
29:12
people are doing and saying, oh, that's a really cool initiative.
29:14
Like, you know, do we want to incorporate that?
29:17
Is that a place we want to go? But I guess, I guess it comes
29:23
back to the fact that we really want to listen to our specific
29:27
customer and be as transparent as possible.
29:31
And I think in that transparency we educate our customer to ask
29:37
us really deep questions and truly get the answers.
29:40
And then also even kind of going back to design, we talk to them
29:45
a lot about, you know, some of these customers are creating a
29:49
logo for the first time, like some of the customers are
29:52
drawing the logo themselves or you know, their marketing for
29:56
themselves for the first time. And this is the first time that
29:59
their logo is going to be printed on something and this is
30:01
going to start their brand. So we really try to work with
30:06
our customers and let them know the challenges that they may
30:10
face in the printing industry with our experience and become
30:14
like a trusted expert in that way.
30:17
And then also we do push people to work with designers, not only
30:22
because it would really, like you were saying, alleviate them
30:26
from having to take a lot of the education on themselves, which
30:29
some of our, a lot of our customers try to do like,
30:31
especially as a designer. When I worked in customer
30:33
service, I felt like I was an Adobe salesperson because I was
30:38
like, OK, so I know there are apps out there, but Illustrator
30:44
might be where you really want to start just because you're
30:46
putting this time and effort in. And as far as a print standard,
30:50
Illustrator is still the standard, you know, or some of
30:53
those Adobe products versus like some of the apps like Canva for
30:58
example, are great and wonderful and I love that Designing is
31:01
becoming more accessible to the layperson if you want to say it
31:05
that way. But at the same time, when you
31:07
go to export a file and then you have to like subscribe to this
31:11
app to get that version that the printer needs, that can become
31:14
an issue. So talking to someone who not
31:18
only knows those ins and outs of the industry through printing,
31:23
that's really gonna make sure that your brand looks the way
31:27
that you're hoping to. I mean, they're really trying to
31:30
encompass your story as a company.
31:33
They're trying to leverage you inside of your industry, inside
31:37
of your community and be unique in that way.
31:40
They'll be able to kind of give you more of these aspects of
31:44
uniqueness to be able to really sell your brand and genuinely
31:49
stand behind it. So I really like working with
31:52
designers. We work with them very, very
31:54
closely like you and I were. We have that background.
31:57
So it's really awesome to have a library of people that really
32:00
support us and we support them and then we just, we are very, I
32:05
think we're very trusted by our customer to help them through
32:09
some of the challenges of even starting a business.
32:14
I don't think I answered your specific question, but that's.
32:18
That's the whole point of the show is to just see what comes
32:21
out. Yeah, I think that it that it's
32:24
a really interesting time, especially with what we're
32:28
seeing in AI and even with professionals looking at what
32:32
capabilities are coming out on almost a weekly basis and going
32:35
whoa, like that used to take me 20 hours to design.
32:39
You know, I could do that, but it's.
32:41
Now all I have to do is type in a few things and it gets close
32:44
enough. And you know, for me, I work in
32:47
Photoshop, I work in, you know, Adobe Creative Suite, I work in
32:50
Canva. I work in in a bunch of
32:52
different things and I've I've learned to work with them all
32:56
together for various needs. You know, some things need a
32:59
quick and dirty thing that I can do, Yeah, that some things need
33:02
a lot more attention and care. I can do some of that because I
33:05
have a background in that balance and I can say ohh, I
33:07
know the capabilities of these things exactly.
33:10
That being said, my capabilities understanding ends in the early
33:15
2000s. That's where my knowledge ends.
33:17
And so I just kind of ignore a lot of the new fancy things that
33:20
would make my job easier because it's a challenge to learn what
33:25
is something you've learned since coming on board at Rostar
33:28
about working in coffee that has surprised you or that you've
33:31
kind of learned as you've had to go.
33:33
I mean you were in design and creative spaces and
33:36
sustainability, but the coffee industry is is new to you.
33:40
Yeah, that's a really good question.
33:44
I honestly still am learning a lot about it from drinking it to
33:52
then like you said, just admiring the designs on the
33:54
packaging to now being a part of a packaging industry.
33:59
I guess the little, the little things are what surprised me
34:03
like for example understanding that like a pound of coffee
34:08
weighs different dependent on the the roast you know if it's
34:12
dark roast versus the light roast those types of things.
34:14
I I would never have thought of that how inside of this industry
34:19
and I know you're asking specifically about coffee.
34:23
I'm trying to think of what I I mean there's so much of coffee
34:26
that I don't know, but I guess the idea of like and I go in my
34:31
head from like farm to table type situation where it's like
34:34
okay. I always had questions about the
34:36
whole process and like how things get places, but that's
34:40
what I do with everything. So I it's hard for me to think
34:44
like to come outside of my bubble.
34:45
I guess that's where I'm having a challenge.
34:48
Well, let's go with that. Let's go down that path then.
34:51
And you're talking about how things get from point A to point
34:54
B. Part of that is like from
34:56
producers to, you know, transportation to a port
35:00
somewhere domestically for us. Sent to a roaster, roasted, sent
35:05
to a coffee shop maybe, and then into the cup of the customer.
35:09
A lot of that starts with connections, You know, literally
35:12
humans meeting each other or talking to each other, either
35:15
over Zoom now, which is an amazing way to like connect with
35:18
people around the world or video chat.
35:19
I shouldn't just say Zoom, but there is a human connection
35:23
there at some point that gets that coffee from a plant
35:25
somewhere into somebody's cup. And a lot of that happens at
35:28
festivals or at industry trade shows, that sort of thing.
35:32
Rostar developed an entirely new kind of festival setup so to
35:37
speak or event setup recently that they then shipped across
35:41
the country. I'd love to know what the
35:44
invoice was on shipping all that stuff by the way from Wisconsin
35:47
to where we were in in Oregon at this a big event.
35:51
What was developing for that like for you like developing the
35:55
festival experience and what you wanted to offer customers or
35:59
people there that will then go back into their part of the
36:01
coffee world? And remember, Rostar as a place
36:04
that, hey, I can get packaging and these are the things that
36:07
make them different from every other packaging company.
36:10
Sure. Yeah, there's a lot there too.
36:14
The way that we present ourselves at the show is
36:16
important and we wanted to present ourselves in a way that
36:19
make us accessible to any customer.
36:22
We also try to represent a lot of our customers at every show
36:27
or we choose regionally because that's where we're going because
36:30
we do have so many customers around the world especially in
36:32
the US But trade shows are definitely where we started and
36:36
I definitely think that genuine connection is where we live as
36:41
far as a company. I think we match you know people
36:46
up to a representative internally just so that they
36:49
have a go to person every time they talk to somebody.
36:53
And I think trade shows help us get those people into those
36:57
communities and really ask more questions, be able to meet that
37:01
customer a little bit one-on-one, talk about their
37:03
challenges and really show them to what we're working on and
37:07
we're working on projects with them in mind.
37:09
You know a lot of what we do comes from the feedback from our
37:13
customers. So to be able to show them that
37:16
we've listened to them, that we have developed something that
37:20
they have been asking for at a trade show, that is kind of
37:23
where that presentation and like delivery happens.
37:27
What? So that part's really exciting
37:28
to see how someone, how someone looks after they see a product
37:32
that they've been waiting for. It's probably kind of
37:35
considered, you know probably relate relates to like when we
37:39
were talking about design and like certain features we were
37:42
waiting for and how we're seeing them incorporated into
37:45
technology. Now some of these companies have
37:47
had these ideas, but they were just waiting for the technology
37:50
to develop and we're the person that's developing that.
37:53
So that part's really exciting and seeing how much coffee does
37:58
touch so many different people and you know how we can be a
38:04
better part of that story is really cool.
38:07
I thought the shows were are really fun and they are
38:12
exciting, they're exhausting and thank God there was so much
38:18
coffee there for us to drink. But yeah, it was SE was really
38:22
great opportunity for us to really experience not only how
38:27
it feels to be at a show, but then also what a customer goes
38:31
through going to show and how they feel.
38:34
Sure. And and it's not just the SCA,
38:37
you know, the event, the one thing a year, I mean I've seen
38:39
you at events, I think in Louisville you're going to be at
38:42
in Anaheim at Coffee Fest this August.
38:45
You'll probably see me there, I'm guessing, since it's right
38:48
down the road. But you're all over doing these
38:51
things and doing this outreach. And then for you in particular,
38:54
the education component of, hey, this is what's possible today
38:58
with sustainability versus this is what's going to be possible
39:00
tomorrow. Planting those seeds I think is
39:03
such a value ADD. I feel like I, I, I did you a
39:07
disservice today by asking you all these questions that are 7
39:10
questions and one and not preparing you for that.
39:13
Next time I will do, we'll do weeks of prep.
39:15
We'll get really, really into it.
39:16
I'll do a better job of being concise.
39:18
I'm wondering what I missed about, in particular, the
39:21
sustainability efforts of Rostart, if anything, that you
39:25
would want to share today or any other kind of, hey, this is
39:28
something I was hoping to talk about and Ryan didn't ask me.
39:33
I took so many notes. I worked on this for two days
39:35
and I feel like I just ended up going all over the place.
39:39
Two things, at least what we get inspired by is our customers.
39:45
And I really love talking about that because our customers are
39:47
so unique. But then also our sustainability
39:50
initiative, we, we did talk about that a bit, but we do have
39:53
like 3 pillars that we kind of go off of, which I think we did
39:56
kind of talk about. Yeah, but let's be a little more
39:59
concise about it. You know, like let's just kind
40:01
of label those 3 pillars and let people know what they are.
40:03
Yeah. So the first one for us is our
40:07
product development and our carbon footprint.
40:09
Through that development, we do hope to have recyclable and
40:13
sustainable material choices in each style of our bag.
40:15
So that's going to be really exciting moving forward.
40:18
We work to divert waste from the landfill.
40:21
That's when we work with our partner to take our plastic
40:25
waste and turn that into energy. So that's a big initiative for
40:27
us that we started earlier this year.
40:30
And then even bigger to us is then again, our third pillar,
40:34
which is transparency and education through community
40:37
involvement. So we try really hard to avoid
40:41
green washing, which we didn't talk about too much.
40:44
But green washing is the idea of either, you know, placing
40:48
something on a package that says, oh, this is recyclable.
40:51
And I'm leaving it at that and just hoping that it's true when
40:54
really it's not always. So we want to get rid of that
40:59
kind of language and even if it takes working with our
41:03
competitors to do that because it's a bigger mission here at
41:06
hand than just us as individuals.
41:10
So we're trying really hard to focus on building, well, first
41:14
researching, then creating resources that work with our
41:18
communities because they're the people that have to deal with
41:21
the end of these packages and processing them.
41:25
So we want to make sure that we're developing something that
41:28
in our local community can be processed correctly in a way
41:31
that helps their efforts because they're the people that really
41:34
have to regulate it, deal with it, get funding for it.
41:39
And so it really is going to take working with businesses
41:43
like us in the private sector, working with our communities to
41:46
develop more and larger initiatives to be able to fund
41:50
those things and make it more accessible in each community.
41:54
Wausau, where Rostar is based as as everyone knows I think that
41:57
listens to the show regularly, is my hometown and.
42:01
I think it's actually a really great locale to have an
42:05
initiative like this where you're trying to work within the
42:08
structure, especially of the community because it's it's
42:11
definitely not a place where environmental sustainability has
42:14
always been on the forefront. I mean it's a paper mill town
42:17
originally that's kind of its origins.
42:19
I very much remember driving past every time you go into
42:22
town, seeing the the plumes of smoke coming up at all hours.
42:27
But it's also it's a growing community that is.
42:31
Being stretched on both sides by either business demands or
42:35
progressive environmental demands, we have a lot of great
42:38
natural resources there. You know the rivers and the
42:41
lakes in the in the forests that are all in people's awareness
42:44
all the time. So finding ways to incorporate
42:47
this into a community like Wausau, Maybe I'm just I'm being
42:51
a little rosy eyed here, but would would imply that it it's a
42:55
transferable set of. Policies or skills or efforts
42:59
into a lot of communities around the country that find themselves
43:02
split on both sides of, I mean, I would say the political divide
43:06
a little bit, but also just this idea of where we should be
43:09
putting our priorities. There's a lot of competing
43:12
demands in a small, smaller community.
43:15
And when I say smaller, I mean like smaller than New York City
43:19
or something. I don't mean like the tiniest
43:21
town of a few 100 people. It's somewhere kind of in that
43:23
middle. It's a nice hub city with a mall
43:25
and all the stuff. Yeah.
43:26
Now I'm defending WASA and I don't even well, and we don't
43:29
have a mall anymore. Well, nobody has a mall anymore.
43:33
That's true. That's true.
43:35
We've gone beyond the mall state of yeah, we just have malls
43:39
filled with pickleball courts that might just be California.
43:41
Oh, that's so. Cool.
43:44
But I think that it's a cool. It's cool that if you can get
43:47
things to work there. To me it seems like, wow, that
43:50
could work in a lot of other places around the country.
43:52
So it's a nice breeding ground for innovation.
43:55
Speaking of wasa, if you were to go out and get a cup of coffee
43:58
somewhere, is there anyone in particular that you like to get
44:02
coffee in? Cuz I'm gonna be there soon and
44:03
would like to get coffee myself. And when you are there, what do
44:06
you order? Man, there's a couple of places.
44:10
I do love coffee shops. So Tuckney is 1A popular one
44:14
that you'll probably hear they're kind of more central.
44:17
And then there's a place called Vita latte that's been around
44:21
for a little while. I.
44:25
Friends of the show, Vino Latte. Oh, wonderful.
44:29
At Vino Latte, I think they have amazing combinations and
44:34
seasonal drinks, so I will always go for their seasonal and
44:37
I don't do that everywhere. Like, I love what they come up
44:41
with. I think it's very they're unique
44:43
and tasty, which is not always the case when people try to
44:46
experiment with those things. So I really do like that.
44:49
But when I go to Tukney, I think they're very dialed in with
44:53
their actual roasts of coffee. So I'll usually do an oat milk
44:57
latte cold and try like some kind of flavoring that they
45:01
have, but mostly an oat milk latte.
45:03
Well, I will absolutely let you buy me an oat milk latte at
45:07
Phoenix. Yeah, in atmosphere.
45:09
How's that? Yeah, absolutely.
45:11
You'd be happy to. Danny, I think talking about
45:14
sustainability can be a challenge because it's such a
45:17
big and ever growing topic. I really appreciate that.
45:22
We just spent an hour doing that, and I know that we'll talk
45:25
again and I'll learn more and more and more.
45:27
And even after the show, I'm sure we'll e-mail and you'll be
45:29
like. We should have said this.
45:31
And we're going to get that into the newsletter, which, you know,
45:34
if you're listening to the show, there's a newsletter.
45:35
You can find it on roastwestcoast.com.
45:38
Thank you for being here and for working with me on the show and
45:41
being supportive of the show. But also caring about something
45:45
so much so that you kind of you keep pushing the places that you
45:49
are down that path. I just find that very inspiring.
45:52
Thank you very much. That was very kind and I very
45:54
much appreciate being on the show and your candor and the
45:59
amount of interest that you have and the amount of things that I
46:04
know about and that we share that I feel like.
46:07
Off air, I'm going to ask you about where I should get a
46:10
birthday tattoo. So we'll we'll get to that very
46:13
much. I have all the answers for you.
46:15
Yeah. OK, some key takeaways from
46:25
today's episode. It's a really challenging thing
46:28
to talk sustainability or recycling and packaging when the
46:32
rules are constantly changing. Depending on which town, county,
46:36
state or country you happen to live or do business in, to
46:41
succeed in those areas requires a combination of technology,
46:45
community will or desire, and the ability to educate the end
46:49
users of a product. As for Danny, her passion for
46:53
sustainability has been a guiding light throughout her
46:55
career or careers, and her willingness to ask questions has
47:00
enabled her to make and continue to make her mark at Rostar.
47:05
Rostar has found a niche working with small business
47:08
entrepreneurs that need or want smaller batches of packaging by
47:12
guiding them through a complex process.
47:15
Today's chat brought up a lot of questions for me.
47:18
Questions like what is the lifespan of a package?
47:22
Who is responsible for the waste of a product that is put out
47:24
into the world and why the F is doing the right thing in regards
47:29
to sustainability so challenging?
47:32
Maybe the biggest thing I took away from my chat with Danny is
47:36
just how many things have to be considered when trying to
47:39
prevent waste in the lifespan of a product or a package.
47:42
That foundational work work, often unseen, will make it
47:46
easier for the rest of us to both recycle and feel good about
47:49
our efforts at minimizing our impact.
47:52
Finally, Rostar's relationship with clients is based on really
47:56
wanting to listen to them and be as transparent as possible.
48:01
So they can become a resource for their packaging and for
48:03
helping them share their story. I'll vouch for the transparency
48:07
part. I was recently visiting home and
48:09
the team at Rostar invited me in to wander around, explore their
48:12
facility, which is much bigger and cooler than I anticipated,
48:17
and ask questions to my heart's content.
48:20
I always have a lot of them, so a big thank you to my tour
48:23
guide, Sadie. I also went to those shops that
48:26
Danny recommended, Tuckney Coffee and Vino Latte while I
48:29
was in Wassa. And I even found a new place on
48:32
the north side called the Pickle Jar, which I definitely
48:34
recommend. But I am sad to say that I did
48:38
not get that birthday tattoo, at least not yet.
48:43
If you want a recap of today's show and Row Star's 3 pillars of
48:46
sustainability, you can find it in this show's post on
48:49
roastwestcoast.com. You'll also find links to Row
48:53
Star and details on how to find them and me at Coffee Fest
48:57
Anaheim. I'll be doing interviews and
48:59
giving people a chance to win coffee every afternoon at the
49:03
Hosaya Coffee Source booth, just down the road from Rostar.
49:07
You can find all the details on roastwestcoast.com.
49:11
That link, as well as the link to Rostar in this podcast show
49:15
notes. You just can't miss it.
49:17
Thank you to Danny for spending a few hours chatting with me on
49:20
and off the show. And thank you to Rostar for
49:23
being the presenting sponsor of the Coffee People podcast.
49:26
Rostar prints coffee packaging and focuses on building
49:30
relationships with coffee brands and small businesses.
49:33
You can learn more at rostar.com.
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They just might be the right partner to share your big story.
49:40
This shows other coffee industry partners are here to uplift the
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coffee community. You should check them out
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because among other things, they're freaking awesome.
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They include Coffee Cycle Roasting, Ignite Coffee Company,
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Maria Coffee. K Porn Coffee Importers, Zumbar
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Coffee and Tea, Ascend Coffee Roasters, Moisture Coffee
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Company, Steady State Coffee Roasting, San Franciscan Roaster
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Company, Crossings Coffee, Acento Coffee Roasters, Camp
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Coffee Company, Civets, Roasting Machines, First Light Coffee
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Whiskey and Hasea Coffee. Source links to those businesses
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and much, much more on the front page of Roast westcoast.com.
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This Coffee People podcast is part of the Roast West Coast
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Coffee Network and this episode is was has been written,
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produced and recorded by me, Ryan Walt.
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I hope that this episode of Coffee People has found you with
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a full cup of coffee. Thank you for tipping your
50:39
baristas and always be sure to drink good coffee.
51:10
What I find is really interesting is I left design as
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a career. Maybe eight or nine years ago
51:16
already, It seems to have gone by really fast.
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And part of it was, was because I realized that I wasn't going
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to be the best of the best of the best designers.
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I was going to be the person who makes other people's designs
51:28
better. That's what I'm good at.
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But recently in the last and all the apps came out in every small
51:34
business or every a lot of my clients were like, well, I can
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do this myself for cheaper or I can have an intern do it or
51:39
whatever. In the last few months, even
51:42
even the last year, I've been getting requests to do a lot
51:45
more freelance design work out of the blue.
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Not because those things aren't still there, but more so because
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they realize that running a small business is already hard
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enough. They have a lot to do if this
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person has the skill set and can do it as good or better than me.
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And I can offload some of that work.
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Maybe that's the better move for my business.
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Now I'm a controlling person, but I'm actively looking to
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offload some of those social media aspects of my business,
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right? Yeah, I can do those things, but
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I really don't want to. Yeah.
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Yeah. There's anyone out there
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listening that runs a social media business.
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Feel free to reach out now, it would be a good time, yeah.