What we do as coffee roasting companies is cyclical. Sure, there are always curveballs, but largely, we do the same things day after day, month after month, year after year.
While this rhythm can feel monotonous, it’s actually a blessing.
Every time we have to make an ad-hoc decision, that is cognitive load. But because our business is cyclical, we can plan ahead instead of chasing our tails.
Unfortunately, I must be the bearer of bad news here: if you haven’t already sorted out your holiday special coffee, advent set, or whatever your favorite roaster does every year that makes you salivate…it’s too late for this year, but not for next year.
Now, of course, you still have time for something special but it’ll just have to be a bit smaller scale than the grand vision in your head. At this point, you can still do something a bit more reasonable, something that likely wont make you salivate, but might just keep the lights on when the inevitable February lull sets in.
Here is what you need to focus on right now if you haven’t planned anything yet:
Number 1 - Keep it simple. If you haven’t planned anything, you can still do a cool label, and maybe get a cool coffee or two in before Christmas.
Number 2 - Get that holiday special done and start planning for next year so you can rock it out!
Number 3 - Start creating an operational schedule for next year.
To keep this article practical, I’ll offer a structure based on quarters and some key areas such as Sales, Operations, Green Coffee, and Projects throughout the year.
Q1
January
Sales - Most wholesale prospects won’t make any big moves in January unless it’s already been in the works for months or they have a crisis. Adjust your sales projections accordingly.
Ops - Plan for lower volume, reduced labor need, and to potentially lean into savings to get you to next month.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract coffee releases that’ll be landing in June.
Projects - This is a great month to make progress on the bigger projects in the queue. Don’t waste the slow down of this month. Additionally, allocate time for you and your leadership team to develop some deep thinking and planning during slower periods to set clear goals for each department and team member. Ideally this would have happened in October but…we’re building to that for next year.
February
Sales - Like January, many potential accounts will not be making significant decisions this month, but conversations can be beneficial.
Ops - You’ll likely see a bit of a dip below your average sales resulting in a reduced labor need, and once again dip into savings to get to March. You’ll need to start planning and projecting for the March uptick in cold brew sales, events, markets, etc. If you own cafes, you’ll want to begin calling for interviews so that you can hire in time for the spring increase in sales that will likely come.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for coffee releases landing in July and beyond.
Projects - You should be wrapping up those big projects you started in January. By the middle of the month, you’ll likely notice an uptick in business so be ready.
March
Sales - Accounts are more ready to chat because they’ve gotten through the holidays and the Jan-Feb slowdown. Be sure to catch up with your key accounts to ensure they are cared for keep the conversations fresh with potential accounts.
Ops -
This the start of the climb to cruising altitude for most roasteries. Make sure you’re staffed appropriately for increased cold brew sales, events, markets, etc. If you own cafes, ensure that you’re tracking sales and labor closely to be sure that you’re appropriately staffed for the spring into summer surge.
If you participate in national, regional, and local coffee events, you’ll need to get a plan and budget pulled together because WOC happens next month in the USA and all regional events will be going on well into the fall. Set a calendar reminder to do this planning in October for next year and all years after that.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in August and beyond.
Projects - You may find that you have time for projects here, but don’t say “yes” to too much and overwork yourself or our team. Remember, summer is coming and with it, you’ll have less time.
Q2
April
Sales - Potential accounts budgets aren’t depleted yet and they are likely gearing up for the summer, they’ve found themselves in a place where they have wrapped up Q1 projects and they have space to consider potentially switching coffee providers. Keep pushing.
Ops - This is where you need to keep your wits about you, check all your projections and budget to ensure you’re pacing well and make any adjustments necessary. Do a cost analysis to determine if you’re volume on dry products (i.e. all products that aren’t coffee) has gone up enough to merit asking for a lower price due to your volume. If your vendors say no to volume discounts, explore potential new vendors. There’s significant potential cost savings here.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in September and beyond.
Projects - This is likely not a good time to start big projects due to likely coffee event travel which will limit your companies ability to take on projects of any significants.
Projects: - This is likely not a good time to start big projects due to likely coffee event travel which will limit your companies ability to take on projects of any significance.
May
Sales - This is a great time to keep pushing, reaching out, hosting events and cuppings with the intent to gain awareness. The weather is nicer and people are feeling the excitement of the changing seasons. Use this to your advantage.
Ops - You likely haven’t found the sales ceiling yet which means you’re spending more money than the last few months just to keep the wheel turning. Note this, plan for it and make sure your projections are pacing with actual usage of labor, cash, green coffee and all other products and make adjustments as needed.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in October and beyond.
Projects - This is not a great time for projects. The real need to keep the wheels greased and ensure that your team has what they need to be successful in their roles and departments.
June
Sales - Prime selling time, although note that some contacts that you have may be doing a bit of summer travel. Don’t let this discourage you. If you hit a dry spell here and throughout the summer, look for other ways to partner with existing accounts to deepen the relationship via partnerships, collaborative events, and one off specials with key accounts.
Ops - Like May, you likely haven’t found the sales ceiling yet. Again, ensure your projections are pacing with actual usage of labor, cash, green coffee and all other products and make adjustments as needed.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in November and beyond.
Projects - Its around this time that you’ll need to plan for July 4th and any other summer holidays that’ll influence production as well as your cafe hours if you have cafes.
Q3
July
Sales - Your prospects will be out the first week or two on vacation. Keep your head up if you get radio silence for the first few weeks.
Ops - This month will feel wonky. Sales will likely be up, you’ll feel like you’re running on a skeleton crew (because you likely are in relation to your volume). The goal this month is to keep your wits about you, and begin setting planning meetings for the fall and winter/holiday season. You’re only 6 months from the end of the year.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in December and beyond.
Projects - This is the time to star putting a bug into the ear of your team about fall and holiday projects so they can come prepared for the meetings you’re about to have over the next few months.
August
Sales - Once again, all those big fish you’re casting for will be traveling this month. It’s not you, they are literally out of office and won’t get back to you until September or October. Keep doing the work, and lean further into deepening your existing partners and relationships.
Ops - You need to start planning for the fall and end of year. Host the end of year planning meetings and begin to put a plan together to crush your holiday plans. Also, determine what days the roastery (and cafes if you have them) you’ll be closed so your team can plan for holiday travel and so you can forecast labor, product usage, cash, etc. Begin to write the copy for your accounts letting them know how your holiday schedule will effect their ordering and delivery days.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in January and beyond.
Projects - Fall and Winter/Holiday planning is in full effect. What you are doing for the holidays needs to be decided by the end of this month with clear action items to hit the ground running next month.
September
Sales - Everyone is back in the office and your prospects busniesses are still quite busy and they are starting to think about the fall and end of year projects. Be consistent and available for new prospects that may come through out of nowhere.
Ops - Gear up for some significant expenses heading into the fall due to purchases for yoru holiday projects such as bundle items, boxes, etc but don’t take your eye off the ball. Volume is still likely sustained and you’re going to need to keep current with your suppliers. Like in April, do a cost analysis to determine if you’re volume on dry products (i.e. all products that aren’t coffee) have gone up enough to merit asking for a lower price due to your volume. If your vendors say no to volume discounts, explore potential new vendors.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in February and beyond.
Projects - Everything for the holidays MUST be done this month to ensure you have enough time for any final design adjustments, production or shipping delays, as well as general product lead times to land in time for you to take product photos, promotion, and start to sell well before the holidays. Additionally, start to plan and budget for World Of Coffee this month and start to sniff out what collaboration opportunities there might be.
Q4
October
Sales - This is your final opportunity to make real progress on any big whales before the holidays start and once they do, the communication will become slow and sparse until January. Don’t waste this month.
Ops - You’re in full implementation mode for all things end of year. Be sure you are also keeping a healthy cash position too in order to be able to not just float through the January and February lull but to sail through it. You may want to consider hiring a few additional seasonal team members to get you through the holidays to handle an increase in demand as well as team members who may want to travel for the holidays.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in March and beyond.
Projects - This time is for pushing to hit your EOY goals that you set in January and running your holiday play. Don’t forget to buy everything for World of Coffee this month - plane tickets, reserve your rooms, etc. Trust me, it’ll be significantly more affordable if you do it now rather than waiting until next year. Besides that, do not add a single additional thing to anyone’s plate this month.
November
Sales - No one will want to talk to you this month…unless there is a problem. This is a good time to start to build your end of year projections and stat to formulate your sales goals and targets for next year while also being available for any account crisises and being a team player to pitch in where other departments might need a hand.
Ops - You’ll have folks wanting to travel, make sure you’ve got a solid plan for how you’ll handle this. Additionally, carefully plan your cash and labor usage this month. You’ll thank yourself in January.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in April and beyond.
Projects - You likely wont have time for projects this month, due to a likely uptick in sales, as well as the holiday break that will come towards the end of the month. If you haven’t started yet, begin to develop a list of projects that will require deep thinking and labor allocation to tackle during January / February.
December
Sales - Like November, no one will be interested in chatting with you because they are just trying to finish the year strong…except for the prospects who may have a crisis. If you solve an prospects challenges during this month, you’ll likely close them as an account next month. Be available, open, and a team player this month.
Ops - The priority this month is to SELL! But you’ll also want to be in close contact with your accountant to determine if you’ll have a surplus of cash that you’ll need to spend before the end of the year to avoid a big tax bill…keep your wish list handy so you can by that new band sealer you’ve been wanting.
Green Coffee - Plan and contract for releases for coffees that will be landing in May and beyond.
Projects - Like November, wont have time for projects this month, but keep an eye out for things that need to be added to your growing list of projects to tackle in January and February.
Look at you! You finished the year strong and you’re set up to crush next year even stronger.
Remember, everything we do in this business is cyclical. Your business is unique and parts of the outline that I shared might not work for you so you’ll need to make adjustments. That’s ok…but what you do can be systematized to alleviate rebuilding the wheel each and every season.