ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Dozens of people filled a suite at an Allentown incubator Thursday afternoon to celebrate a small coffee company’s big step.
Mad Catter Coffee Roasters opened this summer in Suite 127 of Bridgeworks Enterprise Center, an incubator run by the Allentown Economic Development Corporation.
About 50 family members, friends and officials descended on the space Thursday for Mad Catter’s grand opening.
“This is everything I’ve always wanted. And I’m so grateful to be here.”Jeff Wetzel, Mad Catter Coffee Roasters founder
Founder Jeff Wetzel and his assistant, Casey Weidenhammer, made what seemed like an endless round of espressos and other drinks before a short ceremony — with speeches, hugs and an oversized pair of scissors for a ribbon-cutting.
“This is everything I’ve always wanted,” Wetzel told guests in his new roasting space. “And I’m so grateful to be here.”
Wetzel thanked the Rising Tide Community Loan Fund for the financial backing to chase his dream, as well as the AEDC for bringing him into its incubator program at Bridgeworks.
The AEDC more than 30 years ago refurbished a former Mack Trucks manufacturing plant and converted it into space for about a dozen small businesses.
About 70 companies have started the Bridgeworks incubator program over those years, with just over half graduating, according to AEDC program manager Brittany Butkowski.
“I'm not that serious. I'm always joking; I'm always kidding. My brand is really a reflection of that. And I love puns and cats.”Jeff Wetzel, Mad Catter Coffee Roasters founder
The man behind Mad Catter reserved special praise for Weidenhammer — who he called his “on-site cheerleader” and the person who “saw me through all this” — and his mom.
“Thank you so much for all of your help and your support,” Wetzel told his mother, saying she played a huge role in why everyone was at Bridgeworks on Thursday to celebrate.
Learning on the farm
Wetzel’s journey toward professional coffee-roasting kicked off about a decade ago when he grew tired of the corporate world.
He graduated from Penn State University in 2009 and pursued a career in hospitality but he said he “didn't really very much enjoy the corporate environment.”
“So I left that world and jumped from job to job until I really found coffee,” he said.
Wetzel, like many, also grew tired of corporate coffee.
“I used to be a light-and-sweet Dunkin’ Donuts guy,” Wetzel told LehighValleyNews.com. But he eventually started to dislike it.
“It was just like sugar-anxiety water,” he said.
Realizing there must be a better cup of joe was “a turning point,” Wetzel said, one that led him “down a rabbit hole that I just kept crawling down. And I kept going left and right and finding any tunnels.”
Wetzel said he tried numerous at-home methods — like French press, pour-overs and cold brewing — before reading up on roasting. He then made his own mini-roasters, preparing just a cup or two at a time at his place in Hoboken, New Jersey.
Being around the New York “coffee scene” opened Wetzel’s eyes to all that can be done with the drink. He soon knew he wanted to throw himself into coffee, but he said he didn’t fancy being a first-time barista in his late 20s.
That’s when Wetzel’s mom popped up with an idea: go work on a coffee farm.
So he did.
“She knew somebody in Costa Rica, so I actually hopped on a plane and moved to Costa Rica for six months,” Wetzel said.
During his time there, he worked as quality control, calling it a “crazy experience.”
'The stars aligned'
Wetzel next moved to Nicaragua, where he “lived and worked on the (coffee) mill” for several months. He also learned in El Salvador and Guatemala before returning to the U.S.
Working several years at Black River Roasters in New Jersey served as a crash course for Wetzel to gain a lot of hands-on experience as a barista, sales representative and more.
That stint “really laid a solid foundation for … the technical skills of the job,” he said.
The next phase of Wetzel’s career saw him “job hopping” around coffee shops in the Lehigh Valley, which “kind of rounded out” his knowledge of the industry.
While working for a coffee shop, Wetzel started playing with the idea of running his own microroastery and selling at local farmer markets. But he needed a space — and roasting equipment.
“I toured (Bridgeworks), and I said, ‘This is it.'"Jeff Wetzel, Mad Catter Coffee Roasters founder
Those ideas, for months, were just that. But Wetzel then found an open stall and a roaster within days of each other — thanks to social media.
“It’s just like the stars aligned,” he said.
Wetzel now serves up drinks and sells his roasted coffee beans twice a week during farmers-market season in Bethlehem and Hellertown.
He said he’ll continue at those markets so he can “still get to make my drinks (and) still get to see my customers.”
‘Surreal’ opportunity
Bridgeworks’ incubator program is designed to get small manufacturers “up and running,” Wetzel said, adding he’s “so happy” to be “surrounded by other small businesses, by other specialty products.”
Among Bridgeworks’ other tenants are HiJinx Brewing Company, High Point Kombucha, Bina Winery, and County Seat Spirits, as well as companies working in more high-tech industries.
“I toured the place, and I said, ‘This is it,’” Wetzel told LehighValleyNews.com.
He said he “had some ups and downs and some disappointments” as he worked to get into the space for more than a year.
Wetzel said it’s “surreal” to have an 1,800-square-foot manufacturing space to roast coffee after starting with a one-cup, handmade roaster, Wetzel said.
“Every day I walk in, I'm super grateful for the opportunity that I have in front of me, and I'm really looking forward to the future,” Wetzel said.
And about the name.
Wetzel said he wanted to create a brand that was fun, creative, and something people could connect with.
“I'm not that serious. I'm always joking; I'm always kidding. My brand is really a reflection of that,” he said. “And I love puns and cats.”
