Shrewsbury speciality coffee roaster triples output after six-figure investment
A Shropshire-based speciality coffee business has made a six-figure investment to meet demand across both its trade and consumer customer bases.
The investment from Shrewsbury-based coffee roaster, Iron & Fire will allow the business to take a more flexible approach to its customers’ needs while tripling its overall output.
The business has invested in a roaster, imported from Europe, which has been built and modified to Iron & Fire’s exact requirements.
Joanna De Rycke, director at Iron & Fire, said: "An additional roaster has been in our growth forecast since day one, but a year ago it became clear that it was needed if we were to not only meet month-on-month consumer growth, but also better serve our wholesale customers who sometimes demand customised roasts.
“The company was founded on ensuring every customer receives something special in their cup and we’ve stuck by that commitment from day one. Having this additional roaster ensures that each and every order is freshly roasted immediately before dispatch and delivers something special every time.”
Since launching in 2014, Iron & Fire’s trade business has grown steadily and now boasts a customer footprint spanning the length and breadth of the UK.
Its direct-to-consumer business, however, has more than tripled in recent years making further capital investment necessary.
The new roaster has a larger capacity compared to Iron & Fire’s existing equipment and has undergone additional modifications to allow for greater automation whilst maintaining utmost precision in terms of the roast profiles.
Its purchase was supported by Business Growth Programme 2 grant funding via Birmingham City Council which contributed 50 per cent of the pre-modification costs.
Joanna added: "An investment of this size is not undertaken lightly so the support we’ve received with the grant funding made a huge difference. Investing in state-of-the-art equipment is important both for future-proofing our business and guaranteeing the highest quality roasts for which we’ve become known.
“Despite current economic challenges, we’re continuing to enjoy consistent and ongoing growth which is likely to make further investment of this kind necessary, especially if we want to continue meeting our own exacting quality standards.
"Iron & Fire is synonymous with quality coffee and precise roast profiling. That’s not something we can afford to stop investing in.”
The team has set its sights on further expansion this year and Joanna added: "Increasing output is only possible with a strong team in place.
"We expanded our team significantly throughout 2022 and anticipate further recruitment throughout this year as well.”
