MINNEAPOLIS, MN, USA – Minneapolis-based Up Coffee Roasters has been acquired by FairWave, a Kansas City, Missouri, collective of specialty coffee brands operating together to drive quality coffee within communities. Up Coffee is the second Minneapolis-based coffee roaster to join the collective, as Spyhouse Coffee Roasters also recently joined FairWave in 2021.
“We are thrilled to welcome Up Coffee Roasters to the FairWave collective,” said Suzanne Gunning, FairWave vice president of marketing. “Up will bring a new element to the collective with most of its business focused on wholesale products, equipment, and supplies. We’re excited to be able to support and help grow another local Minneapolis business that is so heavily ingrained in the local community.”
Up Coffee Roasters is the leading provider of fair trade, organic coffee, wholesale specialty food ingredients, equipment, and supplies for the Minneapolis region. Up Coffee provides wholesale products, equipment, and training for cafés, retail coffee, and supplies for more than 1,000 coffee shops, restaurants, hotels, and universities. In addition, the Up Café serves breakfast and lunch at its Northeast Minneapolis location.
“It’s an exciting day for Up Coffee as we join the FairWave Coffee Collective,” said David Chall, owner of Up Coffee Roasters. “For almost three decades, we’ve been providing the Minneapolis area with wholesale artisan fair trade organic coffee, and we know this new partnership will only help us grow and improve our operations.”
Up Coffee Roasters will provide the same wholesale product offerings and continue to operate under Chall’s leadership. Up Coffee Roasters’ employees will remain in their current positions, and the company will continue to operate locally in Minneapolis. Through this acquisition, Chall becomes an investor in the FairWave Collective, and Up Coffee Roasters will access FairWave’s marketing and technology resources and best practices from other brands in the collective.
“We are proud to announce the newest brand in the Collective: Up Coffee Roasters,” said Dan Trott, FairWave CEO. “As the Collective grows in Minneapolis and into new markets, we are driven by the same purpose: to preserve and elevate local specialty coffee brands through best practices, innovation, and authentic coffee experiences.”
FairWave’s mission is to enhance local coffee brands in their respective markets so that the brands truly stay local and remain a part of the community in which they operate. To learn more about FairWave and Up Coffee Roasters, visit fairwave.com and upcoffeeroasters.com.
