Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Craig.
Hi Michael, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I’m originally from London, where I enjoyed my 20’s to the fullest. I never found my professional calling until much later on – putting my career on the back burner while I was concentrating on having fun! I drifted between jobs. When I turned 30, I sold all my belongings, packed a bag, and bought a one-way ticket to India. Even though my Mum was in despair at the time, it turns out this was the best decision I ever made! I traveled to many countries, sometimes stopping to work for a while, before setting off on a new adventure again. I found my wife along the way, and it was while working in Melbourne, Australia, I found coffee. Not everyday grocery store coffee, but high-end specialty coffee.
Melbourne has some of the world’s best coffee shops and roasters – and this changed everything for me. I found out that coffee can actually taste great, and I learned the story behind the coffee I was enjoying. I was sucked in and coffee suddenly turned into an obsession. At the time, I was working as a recruiter and while enjoying great pay, I hated the day-to-day grind of growing someone else’s dream. I wanted to start a company, I wanted to create something I’d be proud of – but I had no money and didn’t have the know-how. The next two years were spent researching, reading, and gaining the knowledge I needed to start a business. I wanted my own project, my own business, but I didn’t know where to start. When my wife was promoted to move to Austin, TX, this was the catalyst for me to start something or end up in another unfilling job to pay the rent. The reality of turning 30 without a real career was my driving force. It was now or never.
I started Creature Coffee as a side-hustle pop-up coffee bar in 2018 – with a mere $1000 in my back pocket. During this phase, I worked at Caffe Medici part-time as a barista and was trained by top industry professionals. I scraped by and borrowed favors to make it happen. My side-hustle soon became a full-time business. I’ve never been so passionate about anything – I love coffee people, the industry, the customers, our team, and the science behind it all. The grind was tough, but I had a goal in mind, so the long hours and hard work were worth it. One coffee bar quickly became five, and then we opened a coffee bar inside the legendary Native Hostel on Austin’s east side. Fun times were had and then alas, all of a sudden, the pandemic knocked us sideways. During the unpredictable rollercoaster that hit us all after March 2020, a lot of hard decisions had to be made. Like a lot of the coffee community, it was sink or swim time. That’s when I reconnected with a good friend of mine called Ben, who had been urging me to start roasting since I met him. I called him up, we sat around a table in my backyard, and we put some ideas on paper. That is when the latest incarnation of Creature Coffee was born.
The concept was pretty simple. We planned to roast the best coffee imaginable, sourced from outstanding farmers the world over but presented in a simple, fun manner. Ben came from a long tenure in the craft beer industry and pointed out that there is no reason that the best coffee can’t also be approachable – just like many of the best craft beers or even wines in the world. We wanted to focus on quality but package it all up in something that the average coffee lover could appreciate without needing a PhD in botany or a detailed understanding of the topography. So, here we are today. The world is coming back, normality is on the horizon, our coffee is flowing once more, and we’re roasting our own delightful coffee to boot! We’ve never been busier and have just moved into a new warehouse and tasting room facility. I’m excited to grow Creature Coffee and I’m proud of what our team has achieved through the pandemic.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Actually, starting was the toughest thing. The doubts, the lack of money, no experience. Thoughts of failure, not being able to pay the rent – all these things weigh on the mind and deter most people. With no savings or investment to plow into my project, I had to scrap and piece it all together as I went along. It wasn’t perfect, and it still isn’t, but if you never start, it’ll never happen. I put in a ridiculous amount of hard work and long hours before I could even pay myself. There were times I asked myself if it was all worth it but I persevered. Every time I made some profit, I put it back into my business so we could get better equipment and create a better product. Starting a business without investment is tough, but you learn a lot as you have to wear all the hats. Looking back, though, I wouldn’t have done it any other way.
These early days were a struggle and just as things were starting to grow and pick up momentum, the pandemic hit. I had to make a lot of tough decisions and we pivoted hard to survive. At times, I couldn’t see a way out. Planning ahead was almost impossible with wave after wave of lockdowns and closures. I let my team go and couldn’t see the end in sight. Luckily, I managed to get really lean and Creature Coffee survived. This is when we started roasting coffee. I had the time and the expertise to get this going quickly while things were quiet. I bought a sample roaster and started to piece together a business plan with my good friend Ben. Just as we launched our coffees, the pandemic restrictions started to ease and business bounced back hard. We managed to turn a very difficult situation into a positive one.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Creature Coffee is a small-batch coffee roaster based in weird ol’ Austin, TX. We focus on sourcing the best coffees from the top 1% of coffee farms in the world. But as serious as we are about quality and ethical sourcing, we want Creature Coffee to be fun and approachable. You can find our rotating selection of single-origin coffees on our website directly or from one of our wholesale partners. We also sell home brewing equipment and merchandise and offer a great selection of gifts and subscriptions, so you never run out of coffee. Ultimately, we’re a collection of passionate coffee professionals who seek to help people enjoy better coffee. We’re just about to open our tasting room where we can hold tastings, brew classes and people can swing by to talk all things coffee.
We also have a busy events team. Our expert baristas create amazing experiences with pop-up espresso bars at events, weddings, and corporate functions in Austin, TX, and surrounding areas. Experts at bringing high-quality coffee to the people, we love our happy clients such as Mercedes, Apple, Dell, Laura, Dave, and our Aunt Peggy. No event is too small or too big for our team of coffee-making wizards. We make coffee where no one else makes coffee – offices, ranches, race tracks, retail launches, expos, conferences, weddings, and house parties. This is how we started Creature Coffee and is still a huge part of our business – we currently have five coffee bars and cover all of Texas, mostly Austin.
Our branding is a representation of our values and love for life. We love all Creatures here, in all their glorious shapes, sizes, and colors. Our slogan is Let’s Be Friends – and this goes for our farmers, our team, our customers, the planet, and our fellow coffee professionals. We’re not perfect, but we try and do the right thing, whether that’s biodegradable packaging or paying our farmers above FairTrade prices for their craft.
What makes you happy?
My family, traveling to new places, meeting new people and constantly searching for the next best coffee!
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@creaturecoffee.co
- Website: https://creaturecoffee.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/creaturecoffeeco/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/creaturecoffeeco/
Image Credits
Branding @aleksandra_apaza Photography @hannahedelmann and @tesscagle
