Ft. Stephanie Welter-Krause, Swelter Coffee

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Guest: Stephanie Walter-Krause
Company: Swelter Coffee
Role: Founder & Head Roaster
Online: sweltercoffee.com • @sweltercoffee
What they drink: In the morning a black pourover. In the afternoon a good cappuccino.

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“Our mission is to promote, support, and empower female farmers and women in the coffee industry through sharing their delicious coffee.”
-SwelterCoffee.com

It started with a passion for coffee and a mission to improve the world. In the five years that Stephanie has been working to build Swelter Coffee, it has become an opportunity to create an example of the type of sustainable circular economy she hopes will become more common in the coffee industry.

As the Founder and Head Roaster, Stephanie does all the things. I’ve been there! It can be a lot. She’s taken it further with her commitment to running a sustainable business that keeps climate and social impacts—particularly as they affect women farmers—at the forefront.

When I asked how she managed to stay motivated to care in the face of a wave of environmental challenges, she mentioned being a mom as a source of hope and also acknowledged a personal character trait: “I’m incredibly stubborn.”

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Stephanie grew up in the coffeehouse scene of the Pacific Northwest in the 1990s.
Swelter was relocated from the Bay-area to Chicagoland last year. This is her first true winter. Today’s high in Oak Park, IL was 2 degrees. TWO!
An environmental awareness led Stephanie to Project Drawdown. The concept of growing more food without degrading soils is one of the climate solutions they’ve been working on.
Swelter Coffee is also a 1% for the Planet member, offers 100% Climate Neutral delivery by partnering with Sendle, and donates 5% of sales to organizations who work in coffee growing regions to further support women.
She makes her own cheese!
In addition to the roasting, selling, and wholesaling of coffee, Stephanie is her own client as a visual designer. Being a
For Swelter to survive, the company needs to grow. Finding new wholesale opportunities and growing online sales will enable Swelter Coffee to continue impacting the greater community of coffee.

CHARITABLE EFFORTS

Stephanie shared two of the non-profits that she supports.

https://food4farmers.org/: “We partner with coffee-farming communities in Latin America to cultivate a food-secure future. Our co-op partners and the thousands of coffee-farming families they represent are working to put good, healthy food on their tables every day.”
https://www.beanvoyage.org/: “If smallholder women farmers are equipped with the training, capital, and market connections, then, they will drive their communities toward a thriving future.”

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