KINGFISHER SPECIALTY COFFEE - Key Persons
Kent Holloway started his first retail specialty coffee company in 1989 - Austin Chase Coffee. At that time, most people thought he was crazy! Starbucks had only 17 retail stores and almost no one knew what espresso or specialty coffee was. Over a period of six years, he built a chain of stores consisting of company-owned and licensed stores. Austin Chase Coffee grew to become a regional and International name. After selling Austin Chase Coffee in 1996, he worked as a consultant and traveled the world for two years to study and share his experience in the specialty coffee industry. The scope of his work included assistance in market research, store design and layout, staff training and the location analysis of new specialty coffee stores. Over a period of years, he was a key contributing author to the industry's leading magazine at that time, "Specialty Coffee Retailer".
As an entrepreneur, he initiated an industry evaluation with the SCAA to determine the ideal business formula which used sales and cost of goods sold data from espresso bars, and cafes from across the country to help create an industry accepted formula for the percentages that are critical to sustainable financial, specialty coffee retail success. The question was very simple, "how do we make money in this industry?" These articles, based on experience and research, led to a book and many years of leading a Specialty Coffee Industry seminar on "The Business Basics of Specialty Coffee Retail." Over two thousand start-up specialty coffee retailer "hopefuls" attended these three-day seminars over the years. In addition, he developed and implemented the first Barista Certification program in America and was the first to present a specialty coffee espresso barista certification program and training to China.
Mr. Holloway is passionate about excellent Arabica coffees, their thoughtful source/origin, and careful preparation/roast. Kingfisher Specialty Coffee is a venture/adventure that expresses the finest of these experiences.
Michele co-founded Kingfisher Specialty Coffee, LLC with her husband Kent. She utilizes her decades of expertise as a corporate executive to support the expansion and operations of their company.
She is passionate about the concept of "everyday learning" - the idea that people grow and develop through their interactions with other people (often over a cup of coffee). Her work over the past decade has focused on creating, implementing and improving national/international educational experiences that help individuals, teams and families become more resilient.
In addition to managing Kingfisher Specialty Coffee, Michele also spends time designing educational events, enjoying her husband and three beautiful boys, gardening, taking walks on the beach, and perfecting the Tea Latte.