Wholesale coffee supplier with your own brand

Cafés, restaurants, hotels, grocery and specialty shops, and businesses wanting their own branded coffee.

You earn a margin on each kilo sold wholesale, with extra from private label runs, packaging and larger regular contracts. Bigger orders bring better buying prices.

• Sales and negotiating with suppliers
• Inventory and stock planning
• Understanding coffee quality and sourcing
• Managing cash flow and invoicing

• Check whether you need a Safe Food for Canadians licence from the CFIA if you import food or trade between provinces
• Check labelling rules, including bilingual English and French requirements and Quebec language rules
• Check zoning and local public health unit requirements for any space where you store or pack food
• Commercial general liability and product liability insurance
• Stock tied up in beans, price swings in green coffee and currency changes on imports
• Check WCB or WSIB coverage rules in your province before hiring anyone
• Registering for GST/HST once revenue passes the small supplier threshold

Startup costs are typically estimated at around $15,000 to $50,000, depending on your rented unit, bean stock, packaging, branding and contract roasting arrangements. Stock tied up in beans can be a large part of the total.

Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $8,000 to $40,000, depending on how many clients you supply and the volumes they order. Price swings in green coffee and currency changes on imports can affect results.

Check whether you need a CFIA Safe Food for Canadians licence if you import food or trade between provinces. Check bilingual and Quebec labelling rules, zoning and public health requirements for your unit, insurance, and WCB or WSIB coverage before hiring.