Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
VERENA STREET COFFEE COMPANY
VERENA STREET COFFEE COMPANY. In 2009 cousins Eric Gantz and Mike Gantz became co-owners of Verena Street Coffee Company. Roasting Solutions, the parent company of Verena Street Coffee Co., was a privately-held, family-owned organization founded in December, 2010. (1) The company was located in a small building near the intersection of U. S. 52 and the Northwest Arterial, near where Verena Street was once located and the Gantz family lived. In 2010 Verena Street branding and product development began, Roasting equipment was obtained and installed, and production began in late December with products due for delivery in January, 2011. (2) The company purchased their beans from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms. (3)
In January 2016 the company announced that it was constructing a 34,000-square-foot facility on a 12.03 acre parcel in the Dubuque Industrial Center South on the north side of Seippel Road. The business had outgrown its former site. In 2016 the company's coffee was sold in 700 grocery stores in the Midwest including HY-VEE FOOD STORES, the first customer was the store along the NORTHWEST ARTERIAL;, Sam's Club; and Jewel-Osco. (4)
On the tenth anniversary of the company, the Dubuque company employed seventeen workers. The brand was expanding its territory into several midwestern states as well as such large cities as Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, and Omaha. In the latter market areas, the company established warehouses and hired staff to serve a growing base of customers. In early 2021, the company planned to expand into the Kansas City market. (5)
The company strategy was to expand carefully. In the beginning, the focus was on its principal products: "Julien's Breakfast Blend," "Nine Mile Sunset," "Lock and Dam #11," and "Sunday Drive." With success, the company began new approaches including seasonal products like "Pumpkin Smasher," and "Stocking Stuffer." Flavored coffees also met with strong sales. (6)
See: LIME ROCK SPRINGS COMPANY
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Source:
1. "Verena Street Coffee Company," Website: http://www.verenastreet.com/?page_id=14
2. Montgomery, Jeff. "Cup Overflows for Coffee Company," Telegraph Herald, January 3, 2016, p 1
3. "Verena Street..."
4. Ibid.
5. Montgomery, Jeff, "The Perks of Success," Telegraph Herald, December 9, 2020, p. 1A
6. Ibid, p. 2A