Ones to Watch | By Sabrina Davis
The Human Bean
The quality of the coffee is critical to
the brand, Hawkins and Casey say. Ensuring that quality in the
long term is the focus of the company’s Farm Friendly
Direct program. The program rewards farmers growing first-rate
coffee with above-market prices, allocating the extra money to
fund local improvement projects like a water treatment plant in
Guatemala and a new schoolhouse and paid teacher in Papua New
Guinea, along with other projects in El Salvador, Ethiopia,
Peru, and Costa Rica.
“There are so many large purveyors of
coffee coming in to get a limited quantity of top-grade
beans,” Casey says. “We are building loyalty with
the farmers and are seeing it pay off. There have been some
very respectable companies go in and offer farmers we’ve
been working with more money and they’ve decided to stick
with us.”
Ensuring a supply of high-quality coffee is
one factor in a complex equation The Human Bean team began
working years ago in laying the foundation for a national
brand. From the equipment and store layout to the franchisee
training and support systems, Hawkins and Casey have created
what they say is a franchise opportunity with one of the
greatest and fastest returns on investment available.
The Human Bean
Managing partners:
Dan Hawkins and Tom Casey
HQ: Medford,
Oregon
Year Started: 1998
Annual Sales: $12 million
Total Units: 31
Franchise Units: 22
Why
it bears watching: “We are operators first. That’s what sets
us apart,” Hawkins says. “We know how to operate
high-volume, double-sided drive-thrus, and we’re good at
what we do.”
The Human Bean stores handle between 350
and 450 transactions a day between the hours of 5 a.m. and 9 p.m.
The average check is $4 to $5. The profit margin is excellent
given the real estate required. The buildings are 12-by-36 feet
on a 15,000- to 22,000-square-foot piece of land.
While the company is testing locations with
seating, it will remain focused on its double-drive-thru
business. “The build-out is low, there are only three
employees in a location, and we believe we can get more people
through our drive-thrus than we could serve in a
café,” Hawkins says.
Hawkins and Casey are excited about the
exponential growth they are seeing through area development.
“As we’ve ventured into larger, more-populated
areas like Colorado and Arizona, we’re getting more
exposure to multi-franchise operators who are seeing us as a
great complement to their portfolio,” Casey says.
“We’ve created the
infrastructure to accommodate very large growth, while
continuing to focus on good service to our customers and
partners. Given that, I don’t see a limit to how much we
can grow.”
