Inspiring the next generation of small business owners

New mittens for the kids. Gifts for our favorite folks. Flour and sugar for treats. The holidays are here, and most of us are shopping – a lot.  And whether it’s for gifts, groceries or gloves, you probably have a choice between shopping the giants and buying from small businesses. 

Actually, more than 30 million U.S. businesses are small, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. So most people can find a small business that provides the good or service they need. And although small business are – well – small, they make a huge impact. 

Between 2000 and 2017, “small businesses created 8.4 million new jobs while large businesses created 4.4 million.” And small business owners are families, women, immigrants and people of color. Data from the Small Business Administration give us these numbers about small businesses:

• 10 million women-owned and 2.5 million more owned equally by men and women

• 8 million minority-owned

• 2.5 million veteran-owned

• 20 percent family owned

• More than 14 percent owned by immigrants

Those are some inspiring numbers! 

And if that’s not enough, small businesses tend to stay local, hire local, and support local civic life. That community connection keeps small businesses accountable to and engaged with the communities in which they operate. According to Ashoka Changemakers, a “global network of social entrepreneurs, innovators, business leaders, policy makers and activists” small and medium-sized businesses tend to be more environmentally friendly, because these businesses “typically have a deep connection to their communities’ and environments’ needs, and therefore often have an incentive to be good stewards of their surrounding environment.” 

CoffeeSock is a small, woman-owned, family-run business with community and environment at our heart.  We employ a rad group of women artists and leaders to produce sustainable products that add value to our community far and wide. And we’re proud to support the Austin economy and contribute to the city’s civic life. That’s what small businesses do all over the globe.

This gift giving season and beyond, when you need to buy, we hope you’ll spend small, where the your purchase multiplies, supporting families, women and minority owned businesses, local communities, and sustainability.

Happy holidays y’all!

I made my first altar for Dia de los Muertos four years ago, one year after my dad passed away. It wasn’t a tradition I grew up with, but missing my pops and hungry to commune with him, I was drawn to the ritual and to the chance to share memories with my children. 

My dad was a dreamer and a doer, a trait I proudly inherited. But more than that, he was my greatest encourager. When I went to college to be a “weather girl” he cheered me on. When I decided to become a dental hygienist, he was enthusiastic. When my visions turned entrepreneurial, he went along with my scheme to buy our childhood house and turn it into a coffeeshop and bookstore. I still own and love that house, but it is still not a coffeeshop or a bookstore. 

Later, as a young pregnant wife, I decided on a house cleaning business, and my dad bought all of the tools I would need – a top of the line vacuum cleaner and natural cleaning supplies. And for my first sewing business, he sewed reusable bags alongside me at a time when no one was really using them. He delighted in my successes and encouraged me to be better and stronger. He was my first sewer when I started CoffeeSock. Meticulous with his tools, his filters turned out perfect even as my own were a bit wonky. It drove him crazy, so he made our first acrylic pattern, and standardized our product. 

My dad. We worked together. We hiked through Central America together. And we drank countless cups of black coffee together, sometimes lukewarm, but never minding. I am grateful for the annual ritual that does him honor, along with those others before him whose legacies have traveled through the ages and reside in me and my family.

This Dia de los Muertos, I will add marigolds to my dad’s altar, light a few candles, and celebrate him in memories so that he lives on in my children. 

La Fortuna Waterfall, Costa Rica

September 15th kicked off National Hispanic Heritage Month, and we are deeply grateful for the contributions of Hispanic Americans to the CoffeeSock company and story. In many ways, CoffeeSock traces its lineage back to Mexico and South America, starting with those first sips of coffee, snuck from my mama’s mug. 

Baby Corina and her mom Maria

My love of coffee began with stolen sips. In my memory, my mama always had a cup of coffee near. She drank her brew with just enough sweetness and cream that I found it irresistible and took every opportunity to test it.  My momma immigrated from the Mexican border town of Piedras Negras when she was 13, and my childhood memories combine the smell of a fresh pot brewing with the sounds of her Spanish music. I still enjoy listening to Selena while sipping a cuppa, but I drink my brew black these days.

The “sock” part of CoffeeSock owes its origin to the Costa Rican “chorreador” - a simple cotton bag attached to a wire and the first cotton filter I ever used. There in the indescribable beauty of Costa Rica’s mountain landscape with my future husband, we marveled at the perfect cup of coffee this simple tool produced. Back in Austin, I made my own cotton sock for my Chemex – and then made more for friends and family. What started as a desire to share with my close circle bloomed into a mission to rid the world of paper filters.

CoffeeSock is steeped in these stories and forever grateful. And of course, we might not be here without the efforts of coffee growers too, many in Mexico and South America. In fact, according to Equal Exchange, Mexico produces the most organic coffee worldwide! 

 For National Hispanic Heritage Month we dedicate the ritual of our morning mugs to our own Hispanic heritage, and to the contributions to the planet of all those of Hispanic origin. Cheers!

 ---Corina

Making our chorreador-inspired travel socks

Fall morning rituals

With the fall equinox, we welcome back the coziest of all autumn things: layers. Late September brings a gentle coolness back into our lives and we gratefully hunt through long-buried clothes for our favorite sweaters and flannels. Meanwhile, our sock families in far-flung places prepare for the rains, first snows and inaugural fireplace lightings that signal the season’s change. 

At CoffeeSock’s home in Austin, TX, we are practically giddy to welcome warm beverages back into our morning routines. OK - some of us kept sipping away at hot coffee no matter how high the heat, but for most of us, iced teas and coffees have been the go-tos since early May. But that’s one of cold brews many beauties, you can heat it up. It goes from afternoon cold to morning hot in 5 minutes. Cold brew has layers. And if you’re layer-crazy like we are, add a cinnamon stick or a hint of vanilla. Or cozy up to a camp fire or hearth with a coffee and a hint of Irish whiskey.

Whether the advent of fall brings a reprieve from sweltering heat or a nudge to prepare for winter, happy Autumn friends! 

- Mix and Match -

Drink cold on a warm afternoon or warm it up on a chilly morning.

The school year is back in full swing - the loosely structured days of summer now fully replaced by the near-constant activity that school brings. From late August until late May, everyone seems so busy. 

Busy sometimes feels like a collective hysteria, a need to be constantly doing more, accomplishing more, adding achievements to the narrative resume that is social media. But busy also fuels productivity that can feel really gratifying. Perhaps the difference is personal meaning and what Buddhists call right livelihood, work that causes no harm. 

That’s why when the orders pour in here at CoffeeSock, and when the to-do list moves onto a 2nd (or 3rd!) page – when we have to stay late for an order or network after hours – we remember that this is our right livelihood, a business (and busy-ness) that fills a need, reduces trash, and makes a fantastic cup of coffee. 

We aren’t letting busy totally off the hook though. As we labor and as we plan, we take time to be still too, often in the quiet morning before the school-day rush.

Making socks & reducing trash…

Then stealing a still moment

Happy summer solstice sock family! Around here, we are thrilled this time of year as we finally dive into the maker projects and road trips we've dreamed about during those 9 busy non-summer months. Yes, the temps regularly soar above 100 degrees (that's about 38C for out non-U.S. readers), but that's nothing a swimming hole, a shade tree, and a cold treat can't handle. Somehow, when we're diving into the 68-degree waters of Austin's Barton Springs, or one of the many beautiful waterscapes of central Texas, we just don't mind the heat so much. 

Of course, we don't limit ourselves to the local spots. That's one of the many magics of summer - we can take off elsewhere.  And we sure do love that dreamy place called elsewhere. We get there while lazing in a hammock, or we jump in the van and head that way, or we find it between the covers of a book.  So, on this sunny solstice day, we're using our extra daylight to send some appreciation to the sun-fueled summer and planning our projects and dreaming of our elsewheres and happy with our here. 

What are your projects and elsewhere plans this summer? 

Hitting the trail

A long weekend is a magical thing. Time stretches and unfolds, handing over its hidden hours.  Even one extra day seems to double a weekend’s living space and slow its pace by half. Around here, without the work and school week looming, we luxuriate in Saturday. And Sunday? Well Sunday is completely transformed. No rush. No need. 

In Austin, this particular long weekend is summer’s soft opening. The thermostat is pushing 100 degrees and the kids have only two more days of school. So we happily use these magic extra minutes to practice our summer pace.   Slow, shady, surrounded by books and art supplies, a body of water nearby, a campsite calling, movies at the ready, board games on the table, and popsicles in the freezer (we have some popsicle inspiration coming soon on our blog!). 

Ok, yes. We still have work to do. That never goes away. But by the magic of a long weekend, work sits safely in the future, at least for now. 

hello hidden minutes

On Being Outnumbered

On May the 5th,  1862, a Mexican army of 2000 men in Puebla de Los Angeles stood against 6000 French soldiers and won. This was not the end of the battle for Mexican independence (Mexican independence is actually celebrated in September and not May 5th, as many Americans think). But the celebration of Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of the underdog – of being outnumbered and prevailing anyway.

When you’re outnumbered, you have to innovate. You have to bring your whole presence and all your passion, bravery, and determination. When you’re outnumbered, you cannot hide behind others. You’re forced to ask yourself if you really believe in your mission, so that you can look into the face of very unpleasant statistics and go for it anyway.

And when the outnumbered prevail, others take note and join in. Whether it’s the fight for independence or the fight to live more sustainably, if you believe in it, do not be discouraged when you’re outnumbered. You may not always be.

Sometimes being outnumbered is a good thing. 

Single-use, paper coffee filters outnumber our organic cotton CoffeeSock filters 500 to 1. And we're pretty proud to keep that paper out of the landfills.

Here at CoffeeSock, we are big fans of the Texas coast!

 

I was 18 when I left my home in Marble Falls, Texas and set off for Corpus Christi, three and half hours south to the gulf. On paper, I was there to attend Del Mar College, but in my heart, I was there for the coast. I traded some school grant money for a surf board and spent class days paddling around with my closest girlfriend. On the Texas coast, I fell in love with VWs and learned the art of breaking down in the soft sand. I still think about those hours sitting in the always-blowing breeze and watching the pelicans.  

For those four years in Corpus and North Padre Island, I learned the beaches of Texas until I was ready for my next adventure and moved to the “big city” in Austin.   I’ve had a love affair with the state coast ever since. 

Texas beaches have their own personalities, from the vacationer-vibe and boardwalks of Galveston to the quiet aquamarine water and white sands of Mustang Island State Park. The coastal areas offer their own abundance to those who come – free places to gather with friends and family, social spaces to relax and have fun, quiet spaces for solitude and reflection. And of course, countless plant and animal species call the coast home.  

That’s why efforts like the Texas Adopt-a-Beach program are so important. If clean beaches keep the coast welcoming for the students, families, and retirees who love them, clean beaches are crucial to the sea turtles, algae, crabs, and fish that sustain the gulf ecosystem. 

And consider these facts published by the Texas General Land Office (you can print out learning activities for kids here too):  http://www.glo.texas.gov/adopt-a-beach

• Aluminum cans take 200 years to decompose and the plastic 6-pack rings that hold them together take 400 years to decompose – both are dangerous to animals and people.
• Glass bottles take 1 million years to decompose and broken glass can cause injury and property damage
• Plastic bags take 10-20 years to decompose and find their way into marine animal foods and boat propellers

At CoffeeSock, our love for the beach (and the mountains and the forests and the rivers) inspired the need for our product. We’re committed to a world with less trash. This is why the CoffeeSock family adopted a stretch of Texas coast extending from North Padre Island to Mustang Island State Park. A few times each year, we enjoy the coast with our friends and family and spend some time keeping it trash free.  We are lucky to have family living in a bay area full of sea critters that we get to visit often and spend time in one of our favorite places.  

You can adopt your own stretch of the Texas coast through the General Land Office, here. http://www.glo.texas.gov/adopt-a-beach

I ran the beaches as a mousy-haired kid, surfed through my independence as a 20-something, and now regularly return with my own kids to camp on the sand. Someday I’ll dip my toes in the sea and sit on the edge of a clean and still-vibrant beach, a happy old lady.