DEAR FRIENDS,
When we launched BLK & Bold seven years ago, we didn’t know if the world was ready for a different kind of coffee company. We weren’t baristas or farm owners. We were two kids from Gary, Indiana—one a coffee enthusiast, one a tea drinker—with $20,000 in savings, a garage roaster, and a conviction that business at its best is a force for good.
THESE WERE THE RULES WE WANTED TO REWRITE:
That premium coffee was necessarily a luxury
That overlooked communities would always be shut out of opportunity
That profit and purpose couldn’t sit at the same table
That the coffee aisle couldn’t make space for Black-owned brands
So we created a blueprint—not just for coffee, but for how everyday rituals can resource the future. In an industry in which coffee is too often treated as a commodity, premium is marketed as a luxury, and farmer communities struggle to see equity, we chose a different path. Our blueprint is a plan we live by and a model we offer the world: proof that coffee can be premium and accessible, profitable and purposeful, rooted in equity and built to last. Every sip you take fuels youth who deserve opportunity, farmers who deserve fair trade, and a planet that deserves care...
In the pages [and sections] ahead, you’ll see how a cup of coffee can translate into mentorship in Chicago classrooms, food security in Oakland, clean water in Peru, and climate resilience across our supply chain. You’ll see how partnerships—from local nonprofits to global retailers—extend our impact far beyond the coffee aisle. And you’ll see why we believe this blueprint can outlast us, reshaping coffee for generations to come.
responsibility, excellence & leadership
at the heart of our brand position
behind the
Creativity is treated as a core competency, not a side benefit. From refining roasting processes to developing new cold brew products, employees are encouraged to bring diverse perspectives and artful problem-solving to business challenges. This ethos ensures BLK & Bold doesn’t just react to industry trends but sets them, developing products and partnerships that reflect both quality in the cup and impact in the community.
Inclusion is built structurally into hiring practices, career paths, and ongoing training. Every role is benchmarked to exceed living wage standards, with structured pay bands and annual compensation reviews to ensure fairness. In 2024, the company conducted its first formal pay-equity review. Disparities are corrected when identified, and listening sessions reinforce belonging.
Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; paid time off; professional development opportunities; 401(k); parental leave; and expense stipends. Beyond compensation, employees connect their daily work to the company’s mission through regular updates on youth donations, partner stories, and “Impact Huddles” featuring leaders like Coach Prime. Volunteer opportunities with nonprofits further ground the pledge in lived experience.
- BLK & Bold is 100% Black-owned
- Available in 12,000+ stores nationwide
- 25 team members across roasting, fulfillment, sales, marketing, and administration
- BLK & Bold conducted its 1st formal pay-equity review in 2024
For us, this recognition affirms what has guided us from the start: keeping capital, opportunity, and growth rooted in the communities we serve, beginning in Des Moines. For our customers, it’s proof that every purchase is more than coffee; it’s a vote for stronger, more equitable communities nationwide.
integrity in
every cup
We also lean into processing choices that protect nuance. Alongside traditional washed coffees, we source natural/sun-dried lots—rotated in the full fruit to maximize contact with the cherry—so more of those subtle fruit notes make it to your cup.
This small-batch approach sets BLK & Bold apart from larger brands that often rely on blending to mask inconsistencies. By micro-roasting and cupping daily, the team dials in each coffee’s sweet spot and keeps every lot traceable.
Every coffee we roast has to meet two standards: exceptional flavor and ethical sourcing. Beans must score at specialty level and pass rigorous cuppings, but they also need to come from partners with transparent supply chains, fair pay structures, and commitments to community reinvestment.
We build relationships harvest after harvest, not through one-off spot buys. The team pilots small lots before scaling, provides feedback directly to producers, and pays on time to support predictable demand. As we continue to grow, we’re beginning to share more of our producers’ stories with customers, celebrating the people behind each harvest and giving their work greater visibility in the market.
This balance of craft and conscience shows up in every offering. Whether it’s a fruit-forward single origin or a bold, crowd-pleasing blend, our sourcing choices ensure that each cup reflects both the care of the growers and the standards of specialty coffee.
Our offerings reflect the diversity of coffee drinkers we serve, from light and fruity to bold and full-bodied. A few highlights:
- Ethiopian Single‑Origin (light roast): a natural process coffee from the birthplace of coffee, bursting with chocolate, blueberry, and honey notes. 1,900–2,000 meters above sea level (masl). Gorgeous black, with a bright, fruity finish.
- Rise & GRND (medium roast): 100% Fair Trade Certified™. Washed (meaning the beans are cleaned and rinsed after the fruit is removed, bringing out a bright, smooth taste). Sweet and creamy with toffee, nutty undertones, and a touch of lemon brightness. ~1,850 m elevation. Built for the hustle.
- Smoove Operator (dark roast). 100% Fair Trade Certified™. Silky, full‑bodied, caramel and toffee; excellent black, with cream, or as espresso.
Our top-sellers, Smoove Operator and Rise & GRND, account for more than 40% of national retail sales across ground, whole bean, and single-serve formats. Customers often say they tried BLK & Bold for the mission but stayed for the taste, describing our blends as “smooth but bold” and “never bitter.”
“Specialty coffee” is an earned designation. Licensed Q Graders evaluate beans on aroma, flavor, acidity, body, and balance, with 80+ points (on a 100-point scale) required for specialty grade. BLK & Bold sources coffees that consistently meet and exceed this standard, often selecting lots that score near the top of the scale. Key elements include:
The specialty coffee world often focuses on flavor, origin, and brewing methods—and rightfully so. But quality shouldn’t stop at taste, and safety should never take a backseat. With the rise of cold brews and ready-to-drink (RTD) options, safety and shelf stability are critical. BLK & Bold holds Safe Quality Food (SQF) certification, a globally recognized standard that governs food safety and quality management.
At the roastery, that means:
- Documenting sanitation logs, allergen checks, and full traceability from green coffee to packaged product
- Running daily temperature and humidity checks
- Maintaining corrective-action procedures for full accountability
- Conducting mock recalls and annual re-certification
- Performing daily cuppings after every roast session, with weekly triangulations against “gold standard” profiles
- Using Agtron readings to verify roast degree, plus TDS/extraction testing on brewed samples
- For cold brew and RTD: validating kill steps, monitoring pH and water activity, performing lot-level micro-testing, and using oxygen-controlled packaging for shelf stability
- Running shelf-life checks on cold brew and RTD products, alongside FIFO distribution and date coding to help retailers audit easily
Roasting is led by Operations under Pernell’s oversight, supported by a team of experienced roasters with backgrounds in specialty coffee, quality control, and food safety.
You shouldn’t have to second-guess what’s in your cup. Our certification is one more way we show our commitment to transparency, accountability, and excellence.
BLK & Bold was founded in 2018 on a simple but radical idea: your daily cup of coffee could fuel something bigger than a morning routine. It could put books in classrooms, mentors in schools, computers in the hands of kids without internet at home, and seedlings in community gardens that feed entire neighborhoods.
Today, every purchase fuels a promise we made at the start: 5% of our gross profits support nonprofits across the country. Since 2018, that collective impact has added up to more than $465,000, uplifting 25,000 young people each year. Together with our partners, we’re fueling mentorship in Chicago classrooms, cultivating new skills on urban farms in Philadelphia, and bridging the digital divide in Houston homes.
Our commitment to impact doesn’t stop with our 5% pledge; it’s baked into the beans, the supply chain, and the culture of our company. Through Fair Trade, we’re expanding our impact from national to global—directing premiums into farmer-led projects that build schools, clinics, and climate-smart agriculture across coffee-growing regions. We’re proud to rank among the Top 30 Fair Trade coffee roasters in the U.S.—a recognition that reflects both our growth and the power of conscious consumers who choose impact with their cup.
In 2025, we also began our climate journey. Partnering with SGS, one of the world’s most sustainable corporations, we’re applying the same rigor and transparency that define our social impact work to our environmental performance. From measuring our full carbon footprint to setting science-based goals, we’re building the systems needed to reduce emissions and strengthen resilience across our supply chain.
As a B Corp-certified company, we’re proving that purpose and progress go hand in hand. And our place on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private businesses in both 2023 and 2024 reflects not just our growth, but the collective power of consumers who believe their morning cup can fuel something bigger.
Last year, we welcomed Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders as both co-owner and spokesperson, amplifying our mission to a wider audience. His presence is a reminder that real impact is measured not just in dollars, but in the mentors, role models, and opportunities that change a young person’s path.
This report is an annual update, yes; but it’s also an invitation. With every cup you brew, you’re fueling a cycle in which farmers earn fairer livelihoods, youth find doors opened to them, communities grow stronger, and conscious consumers see their values reflected in what they buy.
