January 1, 1999 was a nice, cool day here in Austin, Texas and Rc had a surprise to share.

We got in the car and headed over to East 4th street to see a building that he felt would be the perfect site for our roasting facility here in Austin.

There was no power in the warehouse that day so it was pretty dark and the location was being used for shredding and recycling tires for use as parking stops. So, I remember it being very dark and very smelly.

Rc was in heaven.  He was so excited and kept talking about how perfect it was and how it would be laid out, etc. It was a quintessential Rc moment.  The choice was trust in his vision and jump in or say no and keep searching.  We jumped and have been forever thankful that we did. 

1400 East 4th has been a wonderful home for Texas Coffee Traders over the years and we have been a part of the fabric of our neighborhood from having the chickens roaming across the street, to “Puddles” the cat roaming our building, to being a spot where the community gathered to see friends, drink coffee and share information.  Our mission is to roast the best coffee and make a difference in people's everyday lives.

A couple of years ago a customer told me that when they wanted to know what was going on in the neighborhood, they came over to Coffee Traders.  We couldn’t have had a better compliment or “mission accomplished” moment.

So, it is bittersweet to say goodbye to the East 4th Street community that we have been a part of and loved all these years. We will cherish these memories and keep the mission going at our new location on Wilcab Rd.  We look forward to sharing the new space with everyone.  And....get ready for the return of the chickens!