The Freaky Bean Coffee Company facts for kids
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| Privately held company | |
| Industry | Restaurants Retail Coffee and Tea Retail Beverages Entertainment |
| Founded | October 2005 by Andrew Kessler and Jonathan Stratton |
| Defunct | March 2009 |
| Headquarters | , |
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Area served
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Southern Maine |
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Key people
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Jonathan Stratton, President Andrew Kessler, V.P. Marketing & E-commerce Gary Woodworth, V.P. Logistics |
| Products | Whole Bean Coffee Boxed Tea Made-to-order beverages Bottled beverages Baked Goods Merchandise |
The Freaky Bean Coffee Company was a special coffee shop and roaster based in Maine. It had its own stores, a place where they roasted coffee, and sold coffee to other businesses. The company started in 2005. At its busiest, it had six locations. After some stores closed, the last two shops shut down in March 2009.
Contents
The Story of Freaky Bean Coffee
How the Company Started
The Freaky Bean Coffee Company was created by Andrew Kessler and Jon Stratton. Jon used to be in the U.S. Navy. They began the company in 2005 with $10,000. This money came from Accion USA, which helps small businesses get started.
The very first Freaky Bean shop opened in June 2006. It was located in Scarborough, Maine. The founders thought of about 400 names for the company! Some other ideas were Dirigo Coffee and Sublime Coffee. There's a fun story about how they picked "The Freaky Bean." People say Jon Stratton's wife had an idea while taking a shower. She called out to Jon, "Call it the Freaky Bean!"
Growing and Changing
The company grew quickly in 2007 and 2008. Here are some important moments:
- In March 2007, The Freaky Bean was recognized as an "outstanding role model" for new businesses. This award came from The Maine Small Business Development Center.
- In July 2007, they opened their second store in Westbrook. This location also became their main office. It was where they roasted coffee and sent it out to stores. It even had a special room for tasting coffee!
- In December 2007, The Freaky Bean bought another company called Maine Roasters Coffee Company. This added two more coffee shops in Yarmouth and Falmouth. It also included Maine Roasters' business of selling coffee to other companies.
- In May 2008, The Freaky Bean opened its fifth store in Scarborough. This new shop was in a shopping area near a large store called Cabela's.
- In the same month, The Freaky Bean was chosen as the official coffee for The American Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival in France. This meant their coffee was the only one served there!
- In July 2008, the company opened its sixth store in South Portland. This was their first and only drive-thru coffee shop.
Challenges and Closing Down
In November 2008, the previous owners of Maine Roasters Coffee took back their shops. This reduced the number of Freaky Bean locations from six to four.
By March 2009, the remaining Freaky Bean stores began to close. Signs were put up saying the company could no longer pay its bills. The last two stores in South Portland and Scarborough closed suddenly.
The Freaky Bean Logo
The main logo for The Freaky Bean was round. It was inspired by a statue found at ancient Mayan temples in Central America. A designer from Maine named Arielle Walrath created it. The logo showed the Mayan character juggling a coffee cup, a coffee bean, and a muffin.
There was also a second, simpler logo. It just had the company's name with a coffee cup and steam. Both logos were used in the stores and on their products.
What They Sold
The Freaky Bean offered many types of coffee drinks. They also sold hot chocolate and organic teas. One of their special drinks was called the "Freakazoid," which was a blended iced coffee.
