Origins: Swell Coffee

March 19, 2020
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What happens when Craft Coffee Nerd meets Personable Drive Through Barista?

Swell Coffee.

Like many husband-and-wife owned businesses, the Spokane Valley business’ identity is a true marriage of Shane and Alicia Thompson. He is the bean-roasting, third-waving, coffee-mad scientist whose Christmas list features brewing devices that appear straight out of a chemistry lab. She is the on-the-go, service-centric schoolteacher and mom with a background in drive-through coffee.

Together, they opened Swell Coffee to be a people-first drive-through experience whose star is the craft coffee Shane roasts himself. A year and a half after opening on Sullivan and 16th, the Thompsons recently debuted a second Swell location at 14505 E. Trent Ave. in conjunction with a major announcement: They purchased longtime drive-through Grinders Coffee and its on-site roaster, Bumper Crop Coffee, from Spokane coffee pioneer Malcolm Wicks. Grinders’ transition to Swell was celebrated with a grand opening special March 14.

When Malcolm first called Shane with the idea last summer, “I wasn’t in a place where my mind could comprehend it.” On one hand, it was his dream scenario. On the other, Swell was less than a year in business. After months of discussion, an agreement was reached.

“I got really lucky, because we could have inherited a business where I’m not a fan of the coffee, but Malcolm to be honest is one of the best roasters in Spokane and understands coffee better than anyone I’ve ever met,” Shane said.

I got really lucky, because we could have inherited a business where I’m not a fan of the coffee, but Malcolm to be honest is one of the best roasters in Spokane and understands coffee better than anyone I’ve ever met.

Shane Thompson, Swell Coffee

The overlap between the two business models didn’t hurt matters. Both center on drive-through. Both feature coffee sourced and roasted by the owners. Both Malcolm and Shane are coffee-centric, but neither are pretentious about it.

“The reality is there are so many people who aren’t there for coffee,” Malcolm said of the drive-through business. “You’re meeting a relational need, maybe an emotional need, maybe a quick fix, maybe an ‘I don’t have anybody to celebrate my birthday with.’ So coffee is just an avenue to do that. In order to break down those walls on a personal level, you have to be inclusive and not seclusive. Why are we trying to be seclusive in a customer-service based industry?”

At the same time, both agree their house-roasted, excellent coffee is a key differentiator in the drive-through model, and one of the reasons Malcolm saw the Thompsons as ideal successors.

“We’ve been able to educate people about putting less stuff into their coffee,” Shane said. “By nature of roasting coffee a little bit lighter than normal and allowing flavor to come out allows people who might have been heavy syrup coffee drinkers into maybe more traditional latte drinkers. So I celebrate those really small victories, even if you could look at us as a gateway into specialty coffee.”

Shane said he doesn’t plan changes with Bumper Crop and has been roasting with Malcolm for a while. Roasting full time — as opposed to just enough for one coffee stand — has been a long-held dream, however, so he is excited about pursuing an entire side of the business he had previously viewed as closed off to him.

“Wholesaling wasn’t part of my vision (originally),” Shane said. “I really didn’t want to because there are already so many great multi-roasters in Spokane that the thought of developing another multi-roaster from the ground up just seemed like excess.”

Eventually, Shane would love to see the Bumper Crop building — a customized wonder that Malcolm designed and built himself — double as a specialty café, “if we can figure out the zoning and parking.”

“I see people here,” Shane said. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take, but I know if I had a cafe in here it could probably do pretty well.”

None of this is something Shane thought he and Alicia would be talking about so quickly, given that “Swell Coffee 1.0” opened only 18 months ago. The location just south of Alicia’s alma mater, Central Valley High School, was a spot they had thought about for years. While the couple live in Millwood, they have family nearby, and Alicia teaches down the street at Sunrise Elementary School.  

Meanwhile, Shane came to a point of transition with his longtime job at Youth For Christ Spokane. By this time, Shane had spent years as a coffee hobbyist, even founding the Artisan Coffee Alliance in 2014 to spotlight and grow specialty coffee culture in Spokane. Deep down through it all, a long-held entrepreneurial dream was waiting to be realized.

“Everything in life was pushing toward one day being in the coffee industry,” Shane said. “I knew I wanted to start a business some day, and coffee was the dream.”

THE NAME

Shane and Alicia love the ocean, so their shop was named long before there was ever any actual momentum behind starting the business.

“Swell was a name we had for a long time, and that is kind of driving this idea that we just love surfing and ocean culture,” Shane said. “We thought it would be fun to create a little drive-through that has this element that’s a little different than what you see in Spokane, like this place kind of belongs on the ocean.”

THE VIBE

While the surfer vibe reflects Shane’s long-held passion for board sports, the heart behind Swell actually goes deeper than an ocean feel or an excellent cup of coffee. It’s something Alicia knew from experience but that Shane wasn’t able to completely appreciate until Swell took off, and that was the opportunity for the business to be based upon relationships. As Christians who care first and foremost about people over product, Shane said he’s been blessed by the opportunities for human connection.

“I’ve got to pray with people; I’ve got to cry with people,” Shane said. “The same day somebody comes through who just lost their grandma, that very same day there’s a woman whose about to give birth. You see it all, this wide spectrum of normal people.”

And, typically, you see them over and over again.

“The loyalty in drive through is insane,” Shane said. “In drive-through culture, people are like, ‘This is my drive through,” and that’s because of relationship. I’ve fallen in love with drive-through culture and the relationships that are built because of it.”

THE TOP PICK

When Swell Coffee became a reality in September 2018, a community of support was quick to follow with steady traffic and stellar online ratings.

From the beginning, the standout menu item has been the craft coffee itself.

“If someone wants like a correct cappuccino or a well-extracted drip coffee with an origin tied to it, a lightly roasted coffee, we have (options) a little bit outside the norm. It’s taking craft coffee but putting it in a drive through setting.”

THE CULT FAVORITE

What is a Swell Coffee product that has attracted an enthusiastic following, even if it’s not the core of Swell’s business? Rather than name a specific drink, Shane pointed to the way his business attracts a loyal following of health-conscious individuals, whether that’s ordering a specialty coffee without pumping it full of added flavors or returning regularly for a delicious green tea.  

“We really care about people’s health, so we have stuff like Kombucha or Matcha or other healthy options,” he said.

THE TEAM

A key component of the Thompsons’ entrepreneurial dream is employing others.

“One thing that’s really important to me and Alicia is that we want to create an environment of work and work culture where our employees may be with us a long time or a little time, but when they leave, they say, ‘That’s how I deserve to be treated,’” Shane said. “So I want people to have this expectation that they deserve to be treated with respect and honor. Whether a drive-through stand or a corporate high-rise job, people deserve to be treated well.”

While the Swell Coffee family has grown with the new location, the Thompsons also keep busy with their own family, which includes children Jude (6), Sailer (4) and Oakley (2).

THE TIME WHEN

The Thompsons love nothing better than being able to care for the people in their community, something Shane said is inspired by their faith. On two occasions, they’ve been able to raise money for families with kids battling cancer, including earlier this year for friends whose 4-year-old daughter was diagnosed with kidney cancer. After a day of fundraising at the Sullivan Swell Coffee stand, $3,100 was raised for the family.

“I think the thing for me is the beauty that you can be a small, ma-and-pa business and make a big difference in someone’s life; it doesn’t matter how big you are,” Shane said. “We get so excited to see how our business can make a difference beyond just a product in someone’s hand. It can actually physically make a difference, a monetary difference. Obviously we’re not going to solve any issues, but we might help pay a bill. We might help be an encouragement just to say, ‘You’re not alone.’”

THE INFO

1604 S. Sullivan Road and 14505 E. Trent Ave., Spokane Valley
@swellcoffeelife on Instagram

  • Huge shout out to Shane for taking time to share his story during this season of transition. Bonus: That oat milk latte was beyond swell!
    — Josh Johnson (soccer jersey: Uganda National Team)

Would you do me a favor?

If you enjoy articles like this one, join the CoffeeJosh mailing list. It’s hurry-free, spam-free and also free … free. As a thanks, I’ll send you a PDF — you guessed it, free — that has 10 of the best coffee shop orders in the Spokane area. (All 10 are drinks and treats local coffee shop owners make for themselves. In this case, expect to pay for your order and feel like it was totally worth it.)

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Origins: Cozy Coffee

February 20, 2020
0

Lisa and Ryan Olson live on a Greenacres farm with their four kids, chickens, goats, sheep and alpacas. The acreage reflected the Olsons’ priority for keeping two daughters and two sons (ages 10, 8, 6 and 5) outside and busy.

Outside the house and busy also happen to be priorities for Mom and Dad. As owner of Viking Homes, Ryan has no problem keeping items on his itinerary, but Lisa knew there would be a major void when the youngest started school.

“What I found was when my 5-year-old went into school all day, I was really lonely, and animals don’t talk back,” she laughed. “It took about 5 minutes a day to feed all the animals. And then it was like, ‘Man, what am I going to do?’ There are really only so many classes at the gym you can go to.”

Lisa found the answer in a longtime ambition. She bought a local coffee shop.

  • Lisa Olson in the “cozy corner” of Cozy Coffee

At 514 N. Barker Road, Cozy Coffee was located just blocks from home, allowing her to put in a full shift and still be out the door by 2:30 to pick up the kids after school. A Realtor friend inquired with Raymond Siegel, the founding owner of Cozy Coffee who developed the property in 2011 and opened to customers in early 2012. He was open to the sale, and the transaction was made in 2019.

Lisa couldn’t be more thrilled. While she has training and appreciation for great coffee, it was never about the product but about the people. She knows the vast majority of the customers by name.

“I absolutely love that,” she said. “It’s super fun for me, and that’s exactly why I bought (the business). When I leave here, I don’t want to leave. I could be here from the minute it opens to the minute it closes.”

Lisa said she strives for a Cheers-like environment. Her cast of regulars provide not only camaraderie but a sounding board for feedback and fresh ideas — whether it’s suggestions and insight from Alex and Gordon or taste-testing a new ginger latte with Keri and Diana, who play cribbage at Cozy every Wednesday and host a book club on Thursdays.

“I love everyone’s sense of humor,” Lisa said. “I love that everyone is able to josh around and have a good time. It’s so fun.”

The conversations, vibe and environment typical of coffee shops were her pull into the business, even if the coffee wasn’t. A tea drinker, Lisa said she actually loves coffee but is aware of its addictive qualities, something she is sensitive to after “a bit of an alcohol issue” many years ago. As a mother of two girls and two boys ages 10, 8, 6 and 5, she said she is extremely careful about anything that could create dependencies.

“Knowing myself and that habit – that addiction habit – I don’t want to suffer from coffee withdrawals or migraines or just wanting to have to have it,” she said. “I drink (coffee) for quality control, but when I drink it, I love it, so I know that I just can’t at this time. I don’t want to turn one addiction into another, even if it is just coffee.”

That’s not to say she doesn’t know her coffee. Lisa attended a week-long training for coffee shop owners at the Seattle Barista Academy, and she and her entire team have been through the local training provided by Cozy Coffee’s wholesale supplier, Thomas Hammer.

THE NAME

Lisa anticipated her coffee dreams long before they had four walls and a street address. Two years ago, she registered a business, Cream & Sugar LLC, with the Washington Secretary of State.

It was to be the name of her future coffee shop, “but when I bought Cozy, it really was the right name for it,” Lisa said. “It’s just cozy.”

As she talks, she is sitting in a nook immediately to the left when you enter her shop. She catches herself with a “no pun intended” laugh as she describes the “cozy corner” she redecorated and purchased new “cozy furniture” for.

THE VIBE

While the word “cozy” fits the overall vibe, Lisa has found herself adding flourishes that accentuate the feel of the business as opposed to making large-scale shifts.

“I didn’t change much when I first took ownership, because Ray did a nice job,” she said.

Other than updates to the aforementioned “cozy corner,” she painted a wall, updated the logo and menus and added shelving and an eating bar using natural wood from a craftsman she admires from the Liberty Lake Farmers Market. She also plans to add a firepit among upgrades to the patio. Unlike many coffee establishments, Cozy Coffee is open till 7 p.m. and serves beer, wine and evening appetizers like nachos and quesadillas.

  • Pesto Turkey Flatbread
  • BBQ Pork Ranch Salad
  • Keto Turkey Rolls
  • Nachos
  • Local Honey

THE TOP PICK

Among a robust morning menu of muffins, bagels, burritos, wraps, biscuits and scones, the breakfast sandwiches are the most popular.

“We send a lot of sandwiches out the window, lots of sausage, egg and cheese on croissants,” Lisa said.

The meat of choice is grilled – not microwaved – in Cozy’s small kitchen.

“I’m very specific in the ways those are created,” she said.

While Lisa said she is still working on a signature drink, the daily special is a clear best seller, typically a 16-ounce latte with a rotating cast of flavors.

THE CULT FAVORITE

On her way back from the Seattle Barista Academy, Lisa scheduled a girls weekend with her sister in Winthrop, chosen in part because of a tip from a friend about a great organic roaster: Lariat Coffee.

She liked it so much, she now keeps a Lariat dark roast drip and, for fans of an organic cold alternative, “I just have a nice, smooth, dark cold brew on tap” that has a devoted following.

With the popularity of Lotus as a healthier energy drink alternative, Lisa has also developed a special partnership with Bob Burgess from the Seattle Barista Academy, who has his own energy drink similar to Lotus that she has branded as the Cozy Kicker Energy Spritzer.

On the food side, Cozy’s Bento Boxes have been embraced by the soccer mom crowd. The healthy snack features four containers featuring boiled eggs, cheese, almonds and grapes.

  • Egg Bites
  • Fiesta Crispy Salad
  • Beet and Turmeric Lattes with Biscotti
  • Plentiful options from The Republic of Tea

THE TEAM

True to her people-focused theme, Lisa emphasizes not just the product, but the great relationships provided by partners like the aforementioned Thomas Hammer, Lariat and Burgess. She finds a similar connection to everyone she does business with, from the staff at URM (“like a second family”) to bread provider Franz (“it’s like a friendship”) to the Scone Ranger, where she admits a personal weakness for the cherry almond.

As her drink of choice, the ample tea lineup she offers from The Republic of Tea was selected with purpose.

Her favorite business relationships, though, are the ones forged with her staff, all of whom stayed on from the previous owner.

“I couldn’t do it without them,” Lisa said. “Even though they could all be my daughters, their input and suggestions (are so valuable). … And we have a good time. We have fun.”

  • The ‘El Gordo’ Burrito

THE TIME WHEN …

If you’re a regular with excellent input, you just might inspire your own menu item – or two, in the case of Gordon.

“Gordy comes in every day,” Lisa said.

He inspired “Biscuits and Gravy Supreme” when he suggested adding some of Cozy Coffee’s burrito mixture to the biscuits before topping with gravy. But a certain 2.5-pound burrito stuffed with hashbrowns, crumbled sausage and gravy has literally become his namesake.

“The El Gordo is huge,” Lisa said. “If someone is going to pay $8.50, I want it to be a burrito!”

A burrito forged from input from a not-so-anonymous customer.

“I do like to have everybody taste and I love the input, so it’s great when I can attribute something to him, because he was a big part of it,” Lisa said.

THE INFO



514 N. Barker Road, Spokane Valley
509-891-7334
@cozycoffeegirls on Instagram and Facebook

  • Thanks to Lisa for sharing her Cozy Coffee story with me … and a delicious latte … and that Lariat organic cold brew … and … just check this place out.
    — Josh Johnson (soccer jersey: Sydney FC)

While you’re here, would you do me a favor?

If you enjoy articles like this one, join the CoffeeJosh mailing list. It’s hurry-free, spam-free and also free … free. As a thanks, I’ll send you a PDF — you guessed it, free — that has 10 of the best coffee shop orders in the Spokane area. (All 10 are drinks and treats local coffee shop owners make for themselves. In this case, expect to pay for your order and feel like it was totally worth it.)

Origins: Shotzy’s Coffee

May 29, 2020
5

Shotzy’s Coffee has dialed up every precaution in order to keep its drive-thru open during the COVID quarantine. But from Shotzy’s perch beside a normally hopping North Sullivan Road, the view has been decidedly different.

No East Valley High School students zipping through a few minutes before the first bell. No weekend soccer families fueling up for a crisp day at Plantes Ferry. Even the ever-bustling Spokane Industrial Park has been eerily still.

In a business where you can tell the time by the arrival of regulars, the inconsistency has been discombobulating.

“We know their names, what they drink and what time of the morning they are coming through,” Shotzy’s owner Kim Cline said of the customers. “We get really close to them. We become part of their routine.”

Customers have felt the difference as well. After a few weeks’ disappearance, a regular pulled up to the window recently and began sobbing. The alarmed baristas asked if she was OK.

“She said, ‘This is my routine, and I haven’t been able to do it for weeks. I’ve missed you guys,’” Cline said. “It really touches us. There is definitely a relationship that is built.”

For Kim, the relational nature of the business is what drew her in the first place. A 1995 graduate of University High School, she got her first coffee job in 1996 at a Spokane Valley drive-thru called Buzzies.

“Once you get in there and work as a barista, it’s just so much fun talking to people, getting to know people and their families and looking forward to seeing them the next day,” Kim said.

She spent a couple of years managing the Thomas Hammer outpost at the Northtown Mall before sensing a “push toward something more.” Along with husband, Jason, and a couple of relatives, she opened the original Shotzy’s Coffee on South Pines Road in 2001. Alongside her cousin, Kim worked seven days a week for the first six months to help establish the culture and clientele of the shop.

“It was grueling,” she said. “But we put in the work, and as long as you put in the work and work hard and believe in what you do, good comes out of what you put into it.”

A few years into the business, Jason and Kim bought out their partners and opened the second location at 3413 N. Sullivan Road. When Kim decided to go back to school to become a nurse in 2014, the Clines sold the Pines location (which retained the Shotzy’s name) and focused on the Sullivan business. In nearly 25 years in the local coffee industry, Kim has seen both the market for coffee and the competition from other stands grow by leaps and bounds.

“There’s definitely more competition today, but if you keep to your core motto of serving quality coffee with quality service, everything will come around,” she said. “We never skimp on quality for cost.”

Indeed, Kim laughed about how the “bigger-hitter” chain coffee stores offer not only inspiration but leave a happy wake with their marketing efforts.

“For example, we serve pumpkin all year long, but the second Starbucks says pumpkin’s here, our pumpkin sales go through the roof,” she said.

As she doesn’t work many shifts at the window these days, she credits a base of 5-7 mostly full-time employees with Shotzy’s continued success.

“I have amazing women who work for me,” Kim said. “I’m very blessed with a good group of girls that I can trust.”

THE NAME

In German, the word “schatzi” is a term of endearment meaning “treasure” or “sweetheart.” She has had customers ask her whether such a beautiful correlation exists in the name of her coffee shop.

Nope. Kim jokes she wishes that it was that glamorous, but in truth the early partners flipped through the yellow pages for inspiration.

“We started looking through the phone book to see what jumped out,” she recalled. “There was a bar in Coeur d’Alene called Shotzy’s, and that’s what we chose.”

THE PRODUCT

With an emphasis on consistency and quality, Shotzy’s has partnered with DOMA Coffee Roasting Company in Post Falls for years.

Shotzy’s has also developed a loyal following of its in-house granita recipe — “We have it in a special machine that makes it nice and thick and yummy,” Kim said — and it’s a featured ingredient in the popular “Six-Shooter,” which also features caramel and soft-serve ice cream.

Of course, Shotzy’s offers a full lineup of specialty drinks, including cold brew options like nitro and kombucha, and energy drinks like Red Bull and Red Lotus.

Kim also gave a nod to longtime local suppliers like Coffee Warehouse and Terry’s Dairy for providing quality products that keep the Shotzy’s customer experience first-rate.

  • The Six-Shooter
  • Shotzy’s Love

THE TIME WHEN …

Several years ago, Kim was at a community business event when she met Mary Anne Ruddis, who was then executive director of the American Childhood Cancer Organization of the Inland Northwest (ACCOIN).

Mary Anne’s passion and the mission of ACCOIN struck a chord with the future nurse, and Kim decided to do a “Coffee Day” to support local families dealing with childhood cancer. Instead of making it exclusive to Shotzy’s, Kim spread the idea to fellow coffee shops, many of which have since put their own twists on supporting ACCOIN.

At Shotzy’s, the support has grown to include a holiday tradition called Beans of Sharing, where customers pick up a tag at the shop featuring a gift for a local family whose child is fighting cancer during the Christmas season. When the customer returns with the gift, they are rewarded with a free drink, and Shotzy’s is able to brighten a local Christmas. Additionally, Shotzy’s was one of several local shops to embrace Hugs for Jade, raising funds earlier this year for a local family whose 4-year-old daughter was diagnosed with kidney cancer.

One final focal point of Shotzy’s love is the East Valley School District community. The shop offers discounts for East Valley students and employees and looks for ways to serve the community, such as showing up to the annual Senior All-Nighter to pour Red Bull sodas — when the event isn’t cancelled by COVID, that is.

“This year we can’t so we’re super bummed, but we went ahead and printed cards for them to come into the shop and get their free soda,” Kim said.

THE INFO


3413 N. Sullivan Road, Spokane Valley
509-892-6160
Facebook.com/shotzys
@shotzys_coffee on Instagram

  • So grateful to Kim Cline for meeting up with me on Zoom to share the Shotzy’s story. The coffee at Shotzy’s goes up yet another notch in my book when you consider how much they have invested in our community. Props and thanks to Kim and her husband, Jason!
    — Josh Johnson (soccer jersey: FC Barcelona)

Would you do me a favor?

If you enjoy articles like this one, join the CoffeeJosh mailing list. It’s hurry-free, spam-free and also free … free. As a thanks, I’ll send you a PDF — you guessed it, free — that has 10 of the best coffee shop orders in the Spokane area. (All 10 are drinks and treats local coffee shop owners make for themselves. In this case, expect to pay for your order and feel like it was totally worth it.)

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