Note From Chanell

Just catching up for a minute.

Most of you already know this, but for those of you who are
newer around here and have joined us over the last year or so, we used to be much more active online. Lives, random check-ins, just popping on to talk. Over time, life happened. Not in one big dramatic moment, but in the way it usually does. Loss, sickness, jobs, finances, stress, all the things that quietly stack up and suck the energy right out of you.

The intentions were always there. They still are. But we
found ourselves making promises we genuinely wanted to keep, only to get frustrated when life pulled us in a different direction. So instead of overpromising and disappointing ourselves and anyone else, we slowed down, focused on what needed our attention, and kept doing what we know best.

One thing that has not changed at all is the quality and freshness of our coffee. That part has never been compromised. We may not have been able to do as many extras or little gifts in orders this past year because costs went way up and life did its thing, but the one thing we will never cut corners on is the coffee itself. What you get from us is still fresh-roasted coffee, not something sitting on a shelf or stored in a warehouse. Real people behind a real small business, roasting coffee the way we always have, making sure you are getting exactly what you pay for. No tricks, no gimmicks, no chasing ads, just good coffee done right.

We are still here.

Still roasting.

Still grateful beyond words for the Nation that has stuck with us from the garage days and for the newer faces who somehow found us and decided to stay. We are thankful for growing the way we have, at our pace, because the number one thing for us has always been never compromising what we do.

One thing we really miss is actually talking with you.

So one of our goals this year is to bring live videos back, just simpler and shorter. Chanel will control the clicker because Fred absolutely cannot be trusted with a mouse. You will hear pets. You will hear real life. It will not be polished, and that is exactly how we want it.

I have also been seriously debating doing my own unpolished podcast. Nothing fancy, nothing scripted, just real conversations and thoughts that live in my head way too often. I am one of those people who always has something on my mind. Not to fill space, but because I care about real talk and seeing things from different sides. I am not always right. Sometimes it is just a thought or a feeling. But it comes from a real place.

So what do you think, Nation?

Should I do it, or should I “stay in my lane?” (AS I was once told to do by a former Iron Bean partnership that still makes me laugh.)

As for Fred’s goals this year, we are pretty sure they involve continuing to drive me crazy. He seems to think it's the oxygen that fuels me. Time will tell... I’ll let him live another trip around the sun and see if he can break me.

So now we are just catching up and checking in.

How is your year really going?  We're a week in!

Chanell

Iron Bean Coffee Company