Portland, Ore. – Portland Roasting Coffee Company officially launched its brand licensing program this month with the opening of its first ever Portland Roasting Café, located in the Oregon Convention Center, with a second café set to open in the Oregon Convention Center later this month. Both cafés are independently licensed locations operated by Aramark.
“Portland has earned the reputation as a city with distinct taste for quality, small-batch coffee and a commitment to sustainability,” said Karen Totaro, Oregon Convention Center’s assistant executive director. “By offering Portland Roasting as our exclusive coffee in our catering and cafés, convention visitors from around the world can literally taste the essence of Portland during their stay.”
Portland Roasting founder Mark Stell will lead the charge in 2012 to brandish the Portland Roasting name at cafés and kiosks at grocers, colleges and universities, hotels, hospitals and foodservice organizations throughout the Pacific Northwest, and beyond.
Portland Roasting’s brand licensing program launch coincides with the roaster winning the prestigious Roast magazine “Roaster of the Year” award for 2012 in the large roaster category. Roast is the leading trade journal for the national coffee industry.
Portland Roasting was selected for the Roast award based upon its quality of coffee, company mission, commitment to sustainable practices, commitment to employees and educational practices, commitment to and involvement in the industry, and for its innovations in roasting, marketing and business practices, according to Connie Blumhardt, publisher of Roast.
“Since its founding in 1996, Portland Roasting has led the industry curve with sourcing, sustainability and humanitarian initiatives, all of which translate into sound business practices,” said Blumhardt. “Along the way, Portland Roasting has held a consistent focus on making quality coffee accessible to a wide range of end consumers.”
Stell asserts that the same qualities that clinched the Roaster of the Year award will draw customers to the roaster’s brand licensing program.
“Coffee drinkers of today are much more concerned about where their coffee comes from, including how and where it’s sourced, and its roasting method,” says Stell. “Our brand licensing program guarantees sustainably sourced premium coffee, with a firm emphasis on stewardship of coffee growing communities, and beyond.”
As a pioneer of direct trade, Portland Roasting has nurtured longstanding relationships with coffee producers while supporting projects at their farms and in their communities. Projects have spanned a range of social and environmental needs, from paying a computer teacher’s salary on a school for farm workers’ children in Costa Rica, to planting shade trees in El Salvador, to supporting a women’s literacy program in Papua New Guinea.
Portland Roasting coffee is available in cafés and hotels throughout the Pacific Northwest, and through foodservice brokers and operators. It is also sold at specialty grocers in Oregon, and online at www.portlandroasting.com.
For more information on Portland Roasting and its “Roaster of the Year” designation, read the article in the current issue of Roast.
About Portland Roasting
Headquartered in the epicenter of the U.S. coffee culture, Portland Roasting has crafted premium blends, varietals and espresso for wholesale and retail customers since 1996. A pioneer of direct trade, Portland Roasting weaves stewardship into its business model by ethically sourcing coffee with an eye on global betterment. Portland Roasting has facilitated 12 projects in as many years – from planting shade trees in El Salvador to building wells in East Africa. Its dedication to roasting exceptional coffees and providing unparalleled service recently earned Portland Roasting the esteemed “Roaster of the Year” award for 2012 from Roast Magazine. In 2010, Portland Roasting produced more than 811,000 pounds of coffee, generating revenue of nearly $6 million. For more information go to www.portlandroasting.com.
Source: Portland Roasting
