Trade is on a mission to find the country’s best small roasters because we’re obsessed with great coffee. We care about the people behind the coffee, and partner with roasters who invest in community and the future of the craft.

Today we're pleased to introduce you to Broadcast. Thank you to Barry from Broadcast for taking the time to chat with us! 

If you're ready to jump straight to browsing their coffee, you can do that here!

At Trade, we’re all about origin stories. How did Broadcast begin?

I started Broadcast after dreaming of opening my own cafe off and on for over 10 years. I’m originally from Boise, Idaho and before moving to Seattle I had the opportunity to take over an existing cafe that was for sale. I also had a really good job offer waiting for me in Seattle, so I decided that I’d take the job in Seattle and keep dream of opening my own cafe for another time.  

What’s your philosophy when it comes to sourcing and roasting coffee?

We work with both boutique coffee importers and trusted larger channels for sourcing specialty coffees. We partner with folks who share our values of equity, investment, community, and quality. Sometimes that means a tiny family farm, other times it’s a community cooperative with a shared washing station. We purchase coffee at an equitable price and value building long term relationships over profit, affording us rare and delicious options year-round.

Your visual identity really stands out. What inspired the branding and design behind Broadcast?

Thank you! I must pay homage to Tim Graham and Eric Fisher. I gave them unfettered creative freedom to take our branding to the next level and they really delivered. Their work was inspired by the fashion world, beer branding, and Handsome Coffee Roasters (RIP).

We know community and quality are at the heart of what you do. How does that show up in your daily operations or long-term mission?

In our daily operations, we like to say that hospitality is the “big E” on our eye chart. That means our number one priority is how we can take care of our guests, neighbors, wholesale partners, and beyond. We believe that true hospitality also encompasses uncompromising quality—and that comes through in every drink we prepare, pound of coffee we roast, and project we take on.

Our mission is “taking care of people through coffee—for community” and we strive to embody that in both the day-to-day and our long term goals.

Looking ahead, what’s exciting you most this year—new coffees, projects, collaborations, or goals?

A big focus for us this year is honing in on our mission, vision, and values. We have an incredible team across the organization who already do so much to bring these things to life, but we believe that part of growth for us means we keep pushing ourselves to be better. What does this look like? We’re bringing everyone together to share where we have opportunities to improve and get closer to our mission. We also have a big branding project that will be launching this year after MANY hours of work and dreaming.

We’re also excited to take the leadership team to World of Coffee in San Diego this year, where we’ll get to connect with the larger coffee community.

Founder / Team Q&A

First, tell us a little about yourself—whatever you’d like to share.

Hey there! I’m Barry, janitor (and owner) at Broadcast. I’m pretty shy until I get to know you, but once that happens, watch out! I enjoy running—road and trails. I feel that running is a great way to connect to cities and remote parts of our beautiful planet. I also love to travel, so when I’m not in Seattle, I’m often out trekking the world. I'll be in Slovenia this summer doing a 5-day hut-to-hut trail run through the Julian Alps.

What are three things you love most about running a roasting business? 

Oh gosh, there are so many things that I love. But my top 3 as of writing this:

1. I love how dynamic my days are. We try to have a protocol for everything that could possibly happen, but things come out of nowhere…I recently taught my Operations Director Natalie how to fix our leaky HVAC unit over the phone.
   

2. I get to run a business that makes a pretty big impact on the communities we operate in by investing in organizations that feed, educate, house, and keep our community tidy.
   

3. I get to taste so much good and different coffee out there. While we only bring on, like, 1% of what we taste, I’m so lucky that I get to experience so many varieties, processes, and origins. 

We have to ask: how do you make coffee at home?

I’m totally going to call myself out here. So day-to-day, I grind coffee the night before in a burr grinder and program my coffee maker so that my first pot is done by 6am. On the weekends, I take things a little slower, I’ll brew using a Chemex, and if I’m feeling extra lazy, I have a cafe that is a 5 minute walk from my house. So I have a few different options. I know my cafe isn’t at home, but I feel I spend more time there than I do at my actual home. 

For someone discovering Broadcast for the first time, which coffee would you recommend—and why?

This is easy, and while I know that all of our coffee is special and wonderful, I think a good one to start with is our Crossfade Blend. It’s chocolaty and fruity, easy to dial in as an espresso and makes tasty and balanced drip coffee.

Explore Broadcast's full collection here!