Coffee People ft. Emily Smith, Hacea Coffee Source

Full video posted below, or watch and/or listen to Coffee People on:
Apple Podcasts • YouTube • Spotify • All Your Favorite Platforms

Guests: Emily Smith, Customer Relationship Expert at Hacea Coffee Source.
What they drink: A basic black drip—Brazil preferred. Or a Baby Bear. If you know, you know.
Find On Online: Read the Hacea Roast Approach Blog

"...You're a great roaster. This isn't by accident. You worked really hard. You're really smart. You study. You study your coffee. You know your stuff, and that's why you're a great roaster."
• Emily Smith on seeing other women roasters who may not be receiving the validation they've earned.

WATCH THE FULL EPISODE

When I arrived at Buckman Coffee Factory in Portland, Emily Smith greeted me with a coffee. It was Guatemala washed-process from Finca El Mirador that she had roasted with minor temperature differences to see how the flavor could be impacted.* She schooled me a bit on some current events—she's a fan of the podcast Geopolitical Cousins, and then found us an interview space in the back of the coffee storage area. Before we got started, she shifted some sacks of coffee around so that the coffee we were sitting in front of, was in fact, Hacea Coffee Source's.

From the jump, Emily was well-spoken, thoughtful, opinionated, and willing to be both vulnerable and unfiltered. In short, the ideal guest on a podcast. We cover a lot, but the key point she wanted to express, not to me or even our listeners, but specifically to other women in coffee, was simple and direct. You are seen.

Emily sees you. She sees the work. She sees your passion. She is here for you and wants to see you thrive. Reach out. Ask for help. Share your perspectives. Core to everything she does in coffee is the goal of seeing women in coffee thrive.

*I apologize if I got this detail incorrect. My notes are blurry!

SPONSORED

Visit with the Roastar Team IRL Booth 2443 at the upcoming World of Coffee San Diego, April 10-12. Learn more about the upcoming event at: https://usa.worldofcoffee.org/world-of-coffee-san-diego-2026

VISIT ROASTAR.COM

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Emily has spent 14 years in coffee. The past two (going on three) at Hacea Coffee Source. She's pretty much done everything in the industry, but she started her career in human services and mental health, which she joked is the same audience as the coffee field!
• Human services was a stressful job. Between appointments, she would go to coffee shops in search of that moment when a barista smiles at you, and you're filled with the joy of being seen that was being worn away in her career. Eventually, quit her job and applied at a Starbucks with the goal of learning more about coffee and working with coffee farmers.
• The reality wasn't that smooth. Emily started on the frontlines of Starbucks retail and worked her way up. On the side, she went halvsies on a small Behmor roaster with a colleague to learn how to roast. She would use her off-hours to hang out at local specialty shops and soak in knowledge. At work, she manifested the Reserve Roastery,* and when Starbucks opened its specialty cafe, she was part of the opening team.
• In her effort to learn, she figured out the Starbucks e-mail structure and cold-emailed Amanda Juris, Starbucks' quality control expert (and 2014 U.S. Cup Tasters Champion). She was invited to a cupping, but not your stand-around-the-table-style cupping. This was a massive 500+ cupping of Brazil coffees that were, in theory, hitting similar specs, but the flavor varied widely.
• Having a continuous drive or will is one of Emily Smith's powers. Maintaining optimism thoughout, makes it her superpower. Despite moments of jaded cynicism, her passion for the industry and the people in it hasn't wavered.
• The transition from retail barista to roaster was difficult. She couldn't find the opportunity, so she had to make it herself by renting time on a larger machine and learning on her own until she found an opportunity she wanted.
  
  She didn't think (and maybe at the time wasn't) qualified for the role, but by creating a memorable resume light on experience, but strong in creativity she got her foot in the door. She became a quality control and sensory expert for a white-label coffee operation doing upward of 15,000,000 lbs. of coffee roasting annually. It was a period of great career growth, but it was hustle, hustle, hustle–seven days a week between her job and also expanding her coffee knowledge and experience teaching classes, roasting, and so on.

• Becoming and being a mom while at the forefront of her career was challenging. The time constraints were beyond what I believe is even possible! Pursuing a career impacted her as a mom, and being a mom impacted her ability to expand as a coffee professional.
  
  Even though things have gotten better and paths for women and moms have been forged, it is still a challenge to move up. There is a long way to go to create equal footing in the industry. A big part of who Emily is in the industry is being a mentor or resource for other women who may have questions, need advice, or help. She's probably been there, and she wants to be there to support women in coffee. It can be isolating and hard to see who the role models might be for you. Emily has put up the flag. She's here for you.
• Laila Wilbur hosted an event pivotal to Emily. At an early The Coffeewoman gathering, about 100 coffee industry women professionals showed up to share experiences in coffee, address issues like sexism, opportunity, and coffee competitions. In an interview with Sprudge, Laila said, "The mission is to unify women. To encourage them to find and strengthen their voices. It’s a challenge to be brave."
• You can't get experience unless you pursue opportunities. Pushing forward and persistence go a long way towards getting the job you really want.
• Emily ended up at Hacea after spending time with the owners, in particular Jared Hales, on a sourcing trip. Their values and how they treat people and coffee align. She reached out about joining the team.
• At Hacea, they all do a little bit of everything. Emily works with customers to determine what their needs are and how/if Hacea is the right company to meet them, as well as develops educational coffee resource for IRL and online.
• Full Disclosure: The operator/owner's of Hacea Coffee Source are brothers Jared and Luke Hales. I consider them friends—even Luke.**

*I mean, other people probably helped, too.
**@Luke: Sorry, Buddy. It was just sitting there waiting for me give a poke! Looking forward to seeing you in a few weeks.

FREE YEAH, NO...YEah Coffee!

FREE COFFEE? Become a paid annual subscriber and be rewarded with some Yeah, No...Yeah Coffee from our friends at Relative Coffee Company in Minneapolis, MN.

CLICK FOR FREE COFFEE

A CLASSIC EPISODE

We chat with Hacea Coffee Source Co-Founder Jared Hales about green coffee.