Two Kansas City coffee connoisseurs are breaking onto the scene with their Black Drip Coffee brand.
Founders, Charon Thompson and Dan Smith, started the Black-owned business in 2021 after roasting and brewing their own beans for their enjoyment. Thompson and Smith are no strangers to entrepreneurship, the duo are co-founders of Porter House KC, a nonprofit that helps guide and grow entrepreneurs and small businesses. The duo are taking a page out of their own book by jumping into the coffee trade. But they’ve had help, Fairwave Coffee Collective, one of the biggest distributors in the region, partnered with Black Drip stepping in to help get the brand off the ground, which let Thompson and Smith focus on growing the brand.
Right down to the name, the Black Drip focuses on highlighting Black representation. The duo is working to source their coffee beans from Black-owned farms and Black coffee producers. Black Drip is also working with other local Black-owned businesses in Kansas City to forge a path in a market that has not had a lot of representation.
You can find Black Drip in KC SunFresh on Blue Parkway, Kinship Cafe, The Black Pantry, The Prospect Urban Eatery, Classic Blends Cigar & Coffee Blends, and soon at 2000 Vine Street. A collaboration between Black Drip and Vine Street Brewing is in the works and a pop-up cafe inside 2000 Vine is also being discussed.