Phoenix Coffee Co. Rolls Out Its New Employee-Owned Operation

Phoenix Coffee Co. is getting in on the “new year, new you” act. The company, which has five coffee shops across Northeast Ohio and one wholesale roastery, is transitioning to an employee-owned operation. Former minority partners Shane Hinde and Christopher Feran, both co-general managers of the newly formed cooperative, say they’re looking forward to seeing how many of the 37 employees will decide to take advantage of the opportunity when the application process begins in February.

With the pandemic, timing for the transition is perfect, yet coincidental. Managers started looking into a new ownership model in 2016 and quickly found that banks were skeptical about loaning to hospitality companies. Financed by the Fund for Employee Ownership of the Evergreen Cooperatives, a Cleveland nonprofit, the new arrangement lets current and future employees have input on operations as well as stake in the company and representation on the board of directors. “The timing ended up being great with COVID-19, but it wasn’t our intent,” says Feran. “We wanted to find a way to acknowledge contributions that co-workers make to the vitality of the company.”

For example, when sales plummeted 50% overnight in March 2020, an employee came up with the idea for a bike delivery service, and Feran thinks this move will help spur more thinking like that. “This new partnership with Evergreen positions us to not just survive the pandemic, but also to grow and share profits,” he says. Feran says that while some companies may balk at the idea, the ones that are already employee-centric will have an easier time transitioning.

“In some ways, we had been operating for many years like a cooperative,” he says. “We already had weekly cooperative meetings with managers, offered profit sharing with baristas with a year-end stipend and always welcome ideas.”