While cruising up the beautiful Door County coastline to visit some friends, Vicki Wilson and her husband Doug couldn’t help but think – “How can we move here, and make this our home?” While they did visit Door County often, they found it hard to leave this time – they really wanted to make this home. But how? And after they got home, the thought dawned on Vicki – there is no coffee! There was candy, there were candles, there was wine, there was cheese, but there was no Door County Coffee, and that was the thought that started it all.
Soon after Vicki and Doug began to research and learn all they could about the best kinds of beans, how to roast them, and how they could make this into their reality. Together, made the perfect pair. Doug is an engineer and Vicki worked previously is sales and as a buyer and was the ideas behind it all. After learning everything they could, they settled on a location in Forestville and that they would roast Specialty Class 1 Arabica Beans, the top 2% of what is grown in the world, with Fluidized Air Bed Roasting they were taught about by Michael Sivetz who created that style of roasting!
A building was purchased, green beans were delivered to Door County for the first time and the first roast was done with just 2 employees. A dream from a road trip had become a reality and Doug, Vicki and their sons Doug Jr. and Conrad were the newest residents of Door County. Fast forward a few years and it became apparent that Door County Coffee was outgrowing the space in Forestville and the Wilson family began construction on a 10,000 sq/ft building in the current location in Carlsville, further up the peninsula. They now had more roasting space, more machines and more employees, and continued to grow every single day!
Today, you can find 65 employees, a 40,000 sq/ft building and more than 100 varieties of coffee. You can also find both Doug Jr and his wife Katie working here, along with Conrad and his wife Amanda. This started as a small family-owned business and that is still the case 30 years later. You can find employees who have been here for 29 of the 30 years, employees who have brought their moms, husbands and kids to work here and it is truly a testament to Vicki and Doug, and the family-first culture that they have made Door County Coffee. Our business is coffee and our passion is quality, both in our beans and the people who work here, and we hope you can see it in every bag you purchase and every interaction you have with our incredible team.
Also see... Meet the Family