What Espresso Vivace does

Espresso Vivace is a Seattle-based specialty coffee roastery and espresso bar operator founded in 1988 by David Schomer and Geneva Sullivan as a partnership. The company operates two retail espresso bars (Brix in Capitol Hill and Alley 24 in South Lake Union) and an in-house roasting facility, generating revenue through in-store beverage sales, direct-to-consumer online coffee sales, wholesale distribution via partner Agora Refreshments, and ancillary educational products and consulting.

The company's core technology is its Northern Italian-style roasting methodology, developed by Schomer since 1992, which targets the peak of caramelized sugar content in mild arabica beans. Supporting technical protocols include the American Ristretto extraction standard (20g dose, 20-25ml yield, 27-35 second extraction), per-shot demand grinding maintained since 1988, refrigerated post-roast storage protocols with one-month shelf life, and a two-day post-roast de-gassing standard. The firm has codified these techniques across three book editions, two DVD courses ('Caffe Latte Art' and 'Techniques of the Barista'), an online Vimeo seminar, and over 100 published trade articles.

The business model is multi-stream retail and wholesale with no external funding, no parent company, and no institutional investors. Pricing is not publicly disclosed for beverages; the 'Espresso Perfection' book retails at $35 and is available in English, Japanese, Russian, and Korean editions. Distribution spans owned retail locations, an e-commerce shop selling 12oz compostable bags, a single Seattle-area wholesale partner for office coffee, and limited-capacity (8 students) professional barista training classes. The company is operationally stable but explicitly cap-defined by Schomer's stated 'Goldilocks Zone' of three stores plus a roasting plant.

Name

Espresso Vivace

Legal name

Espresso Vivace

Website

https://espressovivace.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Espresso Vivace is a Seattle-based specialty coffee roastery and espresso bar operator, founded in 1988 by David Schomer, serving premium espresso beverages and direct-to-consumer roasted coffee using proprietary Northern Italian-style roasting and precision extraction techniques.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Coffee Roastery and Espresso Bar

NAICS

Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars (722515), Beverage Manufacturing (3121)

SIC

Beverages (2080), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee Roasters with Cafe (Roastery Cafes) (THAFADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Coffee Blending & Flavoring (AFAFADAC), Specialty Coffee Shops (Single-Origin, Third-Wave) (THAFADAA)

Keywords

• Specialty coffee roasting
• Espresso bar services
• Coffee blends retail
• Barista training programs
• Single origin coffee

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Espresso Drinks: Revenue from two Seattle espresso bars serving coffee drinks prepared to precise specifications. Brix and Alley 24 locations.
2. Roasted Coffee Sales: Direct-to-consumer and wholesale sales of roasted coffee beans including blends (Vita, Dolce) and single-origin offerings. Products sold online and in-store including 12oz compostable bean bags.
3. Barista Training & Consulting: Professional barista training classes (limited to 8 students), Espresso Perfection Online Seminar on Vimeo, and consulting services for other coffee companies.
4. Publications: Sales of 'ESPRESSO PERFECTION' book ($35), and training DVDs 'Caffe Latte Art' and 'Techniques of the Barista'.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Espresso Vivace roasts specialty coffee in the Northern Italian style and serves espresso beverages through two Seattle espresso bars (Brix and Alley 24). The company also sells roasted coffee blends, single-origin coffees, and gift cards directly to consumers via its e-commerce shop, and provides professional barista training, consulting, and educational publications.

Product overview

Espresso Vivace is a specialty coffee roastery and espresso bar chain founded in 1988 in Seattle, Washington, with locations Brix and Alley 24. The company researches, develops, and prepares caffe espresso as a culinary art using Northern Italian-style roasting. The product portfolio includes retail coffee blends and single-origin offerings sold directly to consumers, gift cards, and educational products including the Espresso Perfection book series authored by founder David Schomer, an online video training seminar, and DVD courses for barista training. The company is vertically integrated, operating its own roasting facility and providing professional barista training and consultation services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Brix: Espresso bar location in Seattle
• Alley 24
• Espresso Perfection Seminar

Products and services

• Brix Espresso Bar

Quantifiable outcome

• Roasted coffee stays perfect for one month when refrigerated
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Cascade Land ConservancycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2004Carbon sequestration partnership established in 2004 to offset CO2 produced by roasting operations. Partnered to plant hundreds of small cedar trees in Seattle's Interlaken Park. Director Gene Duvernoy estimated carbon neutrality by 2014. Trees reported to be doing well.
• Agora RefreshmentsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSeattle Vivace distributor delivering fresh coffee to offices. David Schomer was selective, requiring delivery to customers within three days of roasting. Created special 'Agora Blend' for their office coffee service.
• Luis Gomez Andere / Roasters Warehouse Trading CompanyminorOthersChiapas Mexico coffee supplier representing Mexican micro-lot farms. Provided access to Bourbon Pointu (only 20 bags available annually, Vivace purchased 15) and other specialty Mexican coffees.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Starbucks (Reserve Roastery): Mass-market coffee incumbent headquartered in Seattle with a premium Reserve line and roastery-cafes. Competes for the same Seattle specialty consumer and has substantially broader resources to invest in cafe experience and training content.

Direct peers

• Heart Coffee Roasters: Portland specialty roaster with own cafes and a strong direct-trade/single-origin program. Comparable founder-led, craft-driven roastery-cafe model.
• Caffe Vita Coffee Roasting Company: Seattle-based specialty coffee roaster and cafe operator with multiple cafes, in-house roasting, and DTC wholesale distribution. Closely comparable to Espresso Vivace in geography, business model (roastery + cafes), and premium positioning.
• La Colombe Coffee Roasters: Specialty coffee roaster with cafe network and DTC distribution; emphasizes craft, freshness, and cafe experience. Comparable in product mix (beans + cafes) and premium positioning.
• Counter Culture Coffee: Specialty roaster with strong emphasis on sustainability, barista education, and wholesale-driven distribution. Similar craft-focused ethos and training-center business model to Vivace.
• Blue Bottle Coffee: Premium specialty coffee roaster and cafe operator emphasizing freshness, precision extraction, and craft presentation. Shares Vivace's commitment to precision extraction and freshness protocols at the cafe/retail layer.
• Stumptown Coffee Roasters: Portland-origin specialty coffee roaster with own cafes, direct-trade sourcing, and DTC distribution. Operates a roastery-cafe model with content/training emphasis closely paralleling Vivace's craft authority posture.
• Victrola Coffee Roasters: Seattle-based specialty roaster with cafes, in-house roasting, and neighborhood cafe positioning. Direct geographic and operational peer to Espresso Vivace in the same Seattle market.
• Intelligentsia Coffee: Premium specialty roaster known for direct-trade sourcing, barista training programs, and quality-driven cafe operations. Comparable to Vivace in craft authority, training content, and roastery-cafe structure.

Others

• La Marzocco: Espresso equipment manufacturer and longstanding Vivace collaborator on grinders and machines. Adjacent ecosystem participant enabling Vivace's precision-extraction standards rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/espresso-vivace

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Espresso Vivace