321 Coffee
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersRaleigh, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
321 Coffee firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- 321 Coffee
- Legal name
- 321 Ventures LLC
- Website
- https://321coffee.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
321 Coffee industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Specialty Coffee
- NAICS
- Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (31192)
- SIC
- Beverages (2080), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Coffee Roasters with Cafe (Roastery Cafes) (THAFADAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Specialty Coffee & Tea Retail (Beans, Leaves, Accessories) (CRAHAGAI), Coffee (Roasted, Ground, Whole Bean) (CRADAHAG)
Keywords
Where 321 Coffee is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Raleigh
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
321 Coffee business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Retail Cafe Operations: Company-owned retail coffee shops and cafes generating recurring revenue from walk-in customers. Operates 5 locations across the Triangle area including Downtown Raleigh, State Farmers Market, NC State Centennial Campus, and Durham.
- Wholesale Distribution: Wholesale supply to retail partners including Whole Foods, Wegmans, Food Lion, Costco, and Weaver Street Market. Generates transaction-based revenue from bulk coffee sales.
- E-commerce Sales: Direct online sales through shop.321coffee.com for coffee beans, merchandise, and other products shipped to consumers.
- Corporate Partnerships: In-office cafe services for corporate clients (Pendo, Relias, Cisco) and catering services for colleges (Meredith College). Provides recurring revenue through service contracts.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
321 Coffee product offering
Product offeringCore offering
321 Coffee is a specialty coffee roaster and retailer that operates company-owned cafés, an e-commerce store, wholesale distribution to grocery chains, and corporate in-office café partnerships. The company roasts its own coffee at an in-house facility and employs individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities across all operations, integrating a disability-inclusion social mission into its core business model. Revenue is generated through product sales (coffee beans, merchandise, gift boxes) at retail and wholesale, plus service fees from managed corporate café operations, mobile coffee carts, catering, and custom corporate gifting.
Product overview
321 Coffee is a specialty coffee roaster and retailer operating multiple café locations in the Raleigh-Durham area. The company employs individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities across all operations. Their core products include whole-bean coffee roasted in-house (Elevate Medium Roast, Greater Good, Rocketfuel), sold through their own retail locations, online store, and major retail partners (Costco, Wegmans, Food Lion, Whole Foods). The company also offers business services including in-office café partnerships, mobile coffee cart rental, wholesale supply, custom corporate gifting, and event catering. 321 Coffee operates three physical locations in Raleigh (Downtown, State Farmers Market, NC State Centennial Campus) and previously operated a Durham location that closed in August 2024.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Elevate Medium Roast Coffee 321 Coffee's signature two-pound bag of whole-bean medium roast coffee, featured in Costco stores and available through the company's online shop.
- Greater Good Coffee Licensed co-branded coffee with NC State University; medium roast sourced from Guatemala, with a portion of sales funding NC State scholarships.
- Rocketfuel Coffee Blend Exclusive Pendo collaboration coffee blend, previously sold in Pendo's offices as nitro cold brew.
- 321 Gift Box Pre-packaged gift box featuring 321 Coffee products, suitable for gifting occasions.
- 321 Coffee Merchandise Branded merchandise including apparel and accessories such as socks featuring 321 Coffee branding.
- In-Office Café Service 321 Coffee operates and runs private coffee bars exclusively for corporate partner employees, providing an inclusive workplace experience. Operates cafés at Pendo and Relias headquarters.
- Mobile Coffee Cart A mobile coffee cart service that brings 321 Coffee to events, parties, and business offices, creating additional employment opportunities.
- Wholesale Coffee Supply B2B coffee supply service for businesses, restaurants, and offices. Includes coffee beans, equipment, and support for implementing inclusive coffee programs.
- Custom Corporate Gifting Customized gifting solutions for corporate partners featuring 321 Coffee products to support inclusion initiatives.
- Catering Service Event catering services featuring 321 Coffee products for corporate events and gatherings.
Companies that use 321 Coffee
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
321 Coffee technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
321 Coffee partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.
- NC State UniversitycoreCo-branded coffee 'Greater Good' developed in partnership with NC State. Coffee service provided at NC State Centennial Campus location. Founder Lindsay Wrege is an NC State alumna recognized with Outstanding Young Alumni Award.
- PendocoreIn-office cafe partnership providing specialty coffee services to Pendo employees. 321 Coffee operates a cafe within Pendo's office space.
- ReliascoreIn-office cafe partnership providing specialty coffee services to Relias employees.
- LenovocoreTechnology partnership leveraging Lenovo AI tools and smart workplace technology for operational optimization and business process efficiency.
- WegmanscoreRetail distribution partnership featuring 321 Coffee products on Wegmans shelves in grocery stores.
- Whole FoodscoreRetail distribution partnership for specialty coffee products sold in Whole Foods Market locations.
- Food LionsecondaryRetail distribution partnership for coffee products sold in Food Lion grocery stores.
- CostcosecondaryWholesale distribution partnership for bulk coffee products sold at Costco warehouse locations.
- Weaver Street MarketsecondaryCooperative grocery retailer distributing 321 Coffee products to community members.
- EngageNCcoreRoasting facility partnership with EngageNC for coffee roasting operations, producing approximately $20,000 in weekly roasting volume.
- Workplace OptionscoreDisability inclusion partnership focused on workplace inclusion initiatives and supporting employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.
- The Welcome CompanyminorPartnership for welcome baskets featuring 321 Coffee products for corporate onboarding and gifting.
- ChiesiminorMobile coffee cart partnership providing specialty coffee services at Chiesi corporate events and locations.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves15 records
Expansion highlights5 records
321 Coffee competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Bitty & Beau's Coffee: Bitty & Beau's Coffee is a direct peer — a coffee shop chain founded in 2016 that similarly employs individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They operate multiple locations across the US, sharing the same mission-driven, specialty coffee model as 321 Coffee.
Regional players
- Counter Culture Coffee: Counter Culture Coffee is a Durham, NC-based specialty coffee roaster founded in 1995. They share the same specialty coffee roasting, wholesale distribution, and sustainability-focused ethos as 321 Coffee, and are a direct regional competitor in the Triangle market.
- Larry's Coffee: Larry's Coffee is a Raleigh, NC-based specialty coffee roaster focused on organic, fair-trade beans. As a fellow Triangle-area specialty roaster serving local cafes and wholesale accounts, they compete directly with 321 Coffee in the same regional market.
Broad incumbents
- Blue Bottle Coffee: Blue Bottle Coffee is a larger specialty coffee roaster and cafe operator (now owned by Nestlé) with a national footprint. They share the same specialty roasting, direct-to-consumer, and cafe business model as 321 Coffee, but at substantially greater scale.
- Stumptown Coffee Roasters: Stumptown is a well-established Portland-based specialty coffee roaster (owned by Peet's/Emmi) with wholesale, retail, and cafe operations nationally. Comparable as a specialty roaster selling through wholesale and cafe channels like 321 Coffee.
- La Colombe Coffee Roasters: La Colombe is a Philadelphia-based specialty coffee roaster with a national network of cafes, wholesale accounts, and ready-to-drink coffee products. Comparable as a multi-channel specialty coffee operator at significantly larger scale than 321 Coffee.
- Intelligentsia Coffee: Intelligentsia is a Chicago-based specialty coffee roaster known for Direct Trade sourcing and a network of cafes and wholesale accounts. Comparable to 321 Coffee as a specialty roaster with cafe operations and B2B wholesale distribution.
- Starbucks (Starbucks Reserve): Starbucks is the dominant global coffee chain and grocery coffee brand, competing with 321 Coffee in retail cafes and wholesale grocery channels. Although positioned very differently, they set the competitive baseline for shelf space, pricing, and consumer expectations.
Emerging players
- Equator Coffees: Equator Coffees is a woman-founded specialty coffee roaster based in the San Francisco Bay Area with cafe and wholesale operations. Comparable as a mission-driven specialty roaster with cafe + wholesale distribution channels similar to 321 Coffee.
- Verve Coffee Roasters: Verve Coffee is a Santa Cruz-based specialty coffee roaster with cafes and wholesale accounts in California and beyond. They share the specialty roaster + cafe + wholesale DTC business model that 321 Coffee operates.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
321 Coffee social profiles
Digital presence321 Coffee financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
321 Coffee leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
321 Coffee funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
321 Coffee M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about 321 Coffee
What does 321 Coffee do?
321 Coffee is a specialty coffee roaster and retailer that operates company-owned cafés, an e-commerce store, wholesale distribution to grocery chains, and corporate in-office café partnerships. The company roasts its own coffee at an in-house facility and employs individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities across all operations, integrating a disability-inclusion social mission into its core business model. Revenue is generated through product sales (coffee beans, merchandise, gift boxes) at retail and wholesale, plus service fees from managed corporate café operations, mobile coffee carts, catering, and custom corporate gifting.
Is 321 Coffee a public or private company?
321 Coffee is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was 321 Coffee founded?
321 Coffee was founded in 2017. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is 321 Coffee based?
321 Coffee is headquartered in Raleigh, United States, in the North America region.
How does 321 Coffee make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Retail Cafe Operations are the primary driver. The others are wholesale Distribution, E-commerce Sales and corporate Partnerships.
Who are 321 Coffee's main competitors?
Bitty & Beau's Coffee is listed as a direct peer. Regional players are Counter Culture Coffee and Larry's Coffee. Broad incumbents are Blue Bottle Coffee, Stumptown Coffee Roasters, La Colombe Coffee Roasters, Intelligentsia Coffee and Starbucks (Starbucks Reserve). Emerging players are Equator Coffees and Verve Coffee Roasters.
Does 321 Coffee have an API?
No public API is recorded for 321 Coffee.
What industry is 321 Coffee in?
321 Coffee's product category is Specialty Coffee. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFADAE, Coffee Roasters with Cafe (Roastery Cafes), with a secondary code of CRAHAGAI, Specialty Coffee & Tea Retail (Beans, Leaves, Accessories). Its NAICS code is 31192 and its SIC code is 2080.