917: How to Break Into the Coffee Industry With Tracy Allen, Brewed Behavior [Espresso Shots]

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Tracy Allen is CEO of Brewed Behavior, a consulting company that offers comprehensive support to all segments of the coffee industry. Brewed Behavior works primarily with coffee roasters and coffee producing countries to improve their marketing efforts and sales programs. Tracy started his coffee career immediately after college at Proctor and Gamble where he was hired as a beverage specialist assigned to work on Folgers and Millstone brands.  However, he didn’t make his entry into specialty coffee until he became Director of Operations of The Roasterie in Kansas City, MO.  At one point Tracy was the co-owner of Zoka Coffee Roaster and Tea Company in Seattle, WA.  Tracy is also a “Supertaster,” certified cupper, and Q-grader instructor. In the fall of 2015 Tracy’s talents went viral when he was chosen to supply coffee for Pope Francis’ U.S. visit. 

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE:

• What Tracy thinks about the price and cost of coffee (6:02)
• What entry level jobs are available in the coffee industry beyond the classic barista (8:19)
• Who Tracy says are “sensory people” and why they are great in the coffee industry (10:42)
• What other jobs are available to get your foot in the door at a roaster (12:42)
• Where to find jobs in this field, like Sprudge and local roasting companies (15:02)
• Why writing, communication and math skills are important in this field (17:26)
• Why your major is not a dealbreaker to break into this industry and what new learning opportunities there are to learn about coffee (19:00)
• What life experiences help prepare you for the coffee industry, like traveling and language skills (29:37)
• Why one of the best parts of the coffee industry is building relationships with farmers and others “at origin” (32:36)
• Why Blood Diamond and Hotel Rwanda are accurate representations of African politics and how that impacts the coffee industry (39:25)
• What is surprising about the coffee industry! (45:26)
• If you want to learn more about what it’s like to be a speciality coffee entrepreneur and how Tracy built his career in the coffee industry tune in to T4C episode #601