Client Highlight - Leaves-N-Beans
Books of Beans
Words by Shanna Shipman
Published in the December 2007 issue of Numero
They have been paired by people throughout history: literature and coffee.
Our favorite written works, classic and contemporary, may very well have been envisaged by an ingenious mind accompanied only by a steaming cup of coffee.
Daily in corner cafés and living rooms across the globe, bitter black coffee, disturbed only by the sweet addition of white sugar or cream, sits poised next to black ink on white pages.
The contrasts make both interesting.
A stop inside Macy’s on Chicago’s State Street will feel especially gratifying for Lori McCombs, owner of Leaves-N-Beans Roasting Col, this holiday season.
Starting this month and continuing throughout the year, department stores, cafes, and bookstores in Chicago and beyond will feature Storyteller’s Blends coffee, a unique Leaves-N-Beans trademark, alongside novels written by some of today’s most extraordinary authors.
The promotional partnership struck between the Peoria Heights-based coffee business and Harper Collins Publishing Company is an unbelievable opportunity, says McCombs. Her unwavering persistence and believe in the quality of her product (she also credits a healthy dose of serendipity) landed her in the right place at the right time: the national Book Expo in New York City this August.
Leading up to the expo she met with a venture capitalist sold on the Storyteller’s idea, recreated the help of University of Texas marketing researchers, and distributed samples to members of Oprah Winfrey’s staff during a visit to the show.
But a simple phone call landed the biggest break: an invitation (at a fraction of the exhibitor’s cost) to the Book Expo.
Armed with 3,000 samples of packaged Storyteller’s Blends coffee beans, she grabbed the attention of Harper Collins executives, who entered a working relationship with McCombs, stirred by the concept of combining great coffee with great stories.
When she first saw the list of notable authors who had personally signed on to a joint venture cross-marketing Storyteller’s Blends with their novels, she was moved to tears.
The Storyteller’s Blends feature intriguing titles and the short stories that inspired them, accentuated by high-quality graphics on the labels. The stories highlight themes that are universal in nature, yet personally moving. Perhaps that is due to their authenticity. The stories are pieces of real life, says McCombs – hers.
“It’s a dream that not only my stories are heard, but that this is used as a platform for others to tell their stories and to relate to the rest of the world,” McCombs says.
The first two Storyteller’s Blends to hit the shelves with famed authors are Christmas stories: one a celebration of the true treasures of the season, and the other a humorous recognition that, as McCombs puts it, “There is no such thing as a ‘traditional’ Christmas nowadays.”
These follow 10 Storyteller’s Blends already on the market. It all started around this time last year, with a blend called “Three Bones.”
Its inspiration was a quote of advice that McCombs says struck a nerve with her: “You only need three bones to live – a wishbone to dream… a backbone to make those dreams happen… a funny bone to laugh along the way.”
It’s exactly how she does things, and would make a great label, she thought at the time. Thus, an idea was born, and more followed.
Over a cup of coffee, McCombs was asked by a photographer friend, if you could have a cup of coffee with anyone, who would it be? That is the best question anyone could ever ask me. McCombs thought, and soon after created the “Who would it be?” blend.
“Conscious Graffiti” was inspired by an on-air interview of U2’s rocker/philanthropist, Bono. A huge fan, McCombs was struck by the themes in his speech and dedicated a portion of the proceeds from fair-trade Kenyan beans for global charities that strive toward Bono’s goals of fairness and equality for all people.
Another, “The Color of Passion,” gives kudos back to the Guatemalan farmers who created this rich, high-quality coffee. Says McCombs, “We forget our coffee comes from another part of the world where real people work hard to grow it. When I buy coffee, I always ask to learn something about it.”
Some Storyteller’s themes have complex implications, yet others are simple by design. “Brown Suede” stems from an addiction to good boots and what they stand for – they walk with women through life, from weddings to funerals and everything in between.
Other stories are profoundly personal. “Goody’s Joepot” honors McCombs’ father and others of the Greatest Generation who fought in the Second World War.
In a powerful tribute, McCombs dedicates “Love Twofold” to her late big brother, as a celebration of his intense love of life. You’ll see them together on the label.
She says becoming a mother herself emboldened her to go in new directions, leaving a secure career in information technology when she took a leap and bought Leaves-N-Beans in 2003. “It’s the best decision that I’ve ever made. I ignored my logical, analytical side. I just did it.”
Having suddenly entered world’s second-largest industry (only surpassed by oil), she knew it would take a personal touch to make a ripple in a business increasingly dominated by huge national chains. “I thought, let’s not compete with them, let’s go with them. Let’s sell them our beans.”
In three years she built upon an already-solid reputation for quality coffee and grew from a primarily retail business selling by the cup or pound (an aspect of the business she still values and enjoys), to a premier coffee roaster selling and shipping 40,000 pounds annually, a seven-fold increase, to 40 wholesale accounts spanning the country.
She feels Leaves-N-Beans has claimed growing a stake in the coffee world while maintaining a focus on quality, never falling prey to the downfalls of being bigger. Storyteller’s seemed a way to add another element of humanity to the business, and cooperating with literary greats, and opportunity to contribute to a much larger picture.
“I have been given yet another opportunity to be connected… through some of the best literary works of our time. It is a chance to be connected to people from the past and people form the future.” Says McCombs.
As for her own stories, there are plenty more to come because, quite frankly she has a lot to say.
She explained it to a Harper Collins collaborator in this way:
“I’m the girl in class who always raised her hand when her classmates wouldn’t ask the hard question, and I’m the coworker who would challenge the CEO when my coworkers wouldn’t. Now I’m hoping that through Storyteller’s Blends, I’m able to say something that maybe someone else couldn’t bring themselves to say or maybe even ask themselves a question that they couldn’t bring themselves to ask.”
When chatting over coffee, she makes clear that her personality is inseparable from her product. “I see things in black and white. You either love me or not. It is either true, or it isn’t. The bottom line is, all this is real.”
Look for Storyteller’s Blends paired with these books.
In December, 2007:
Mr. Ives’ Christmas
By Oscar Hijuelos
Their Eyes Were Watching God
By Zora Neale Hurston
In 2008:
The Poisonwood Bible
By Barbara Kingsolver
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
By Betty Smith
The Reading Group
By Elizabeth Noble
The Island
By Victoria Hislop
The Pact
By Jodi Picoult
Bel Canto
By Ann Patchett |
