Stumptown Coffee Roasters (1999-2015)
Duane Sorenson began roasting coffee in a Portland garage, then added cafes and a wholesale business that grew into a national brand. By 2015 the company was one of the best-known third-wave roasters in the U.S.
JAB Holding, the German investment firm, bought Stumptown in 2015.
The sale became a model for how independent roasters can scale, then get acquired.
Backstory follows the same early pattern, wholesale plus retail growth from a small roastery, showing one path these companies take.
