Meet Garrett Troutman | Founder – Mezcla Coffee

We had the good fortune of connecting with Garrett Troutman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Garrett, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I’m sure other business owners can relate, but when we first began to launch our business or even business plans, I wasn’t planning on even doing it. It began as sort of an inkling, a passion project, just something I was really into at the time – never realizing this is what I would be pursuing. Then overtime, you begin to look around at the slices of life you love and spend time pondering about, you soon realize it is what you want in life. Maybe not all of it, but the good parts overshadow all of the hard parts and suddenly you’re chasing after a goal you never realized was a goal to begin with.

As this desire manifests into intent and then strategizing, it all becomes very real. At the time my thoughts were all focused on the overall vision. Like a child daydreaming in a field, your thoughts flutter away to this utopian version of life and your business. If everything worked out, what would I want it to look like? If I were to have everything I could ask for, what would I ask for? You think about the experiences that brought you to this place. Why do I even care about this at all? This is what I thought about in the early days. I believe it is critical to have this dreamlike view from the beginning because later you don’t have the time, nor mental capacity, to dream as easily. You’re worried about supplies, cost of goods, training programs, and whatever else you need to keep your business running and staying afloat. And most of all, what you glean in that time will help you steer the ship down the road. When you have a million things you can say yes or no to, it is important to know where you’re headed and why. These early reflections will guide you, or remind you, of why you even decided to start it at all.

What should our readers know about your business?
Mezcla Coffee is a coffee brand my wife and I started as a way of connecting people together through our story. Mezcla, pronounced “mes-kla,” is a Spanish word meaning “a mixture” or “to mix.” My wife Lorena is from Colombia and myself from California. Our cultures, tastes, views of the world, and all the little details which make us unique have become this mixture, or mezcla, as we have shared life together.

Our concept is taking our story as a foundation for what it means to celebrate varying cultures, different perspectives, and ultimately making a safe space for people to be seen and heard. We are doing this obviously first through coffee and other tasty beverages. But we also are doing this through cultivating community with pop-up events, showcasing artists and selling their work, and partnering with local businesses. We have traditional specialty coffee shop offerings as well as our own unique signature drinks that highlight Colombian cuisine and culture.

I have spent half my life, and nearly my whole career, working in the food and beverage industry. From delivering pizza to leading bar programs, I spent many years learning about hospitality and service to get where I am today. While studying journalism in college, I started working at my first specialty coffee shop. It takes a lot to go from even managing a shop to starting your own business – and I am by no means an expert now. I learned early on, the only way to see your dreams realized is turning them into goals. If there’s ever a goal I wasn’t equipped to achieved I asked someone who knew how. In this industry, experience and exposure go a long way. You can know all the theory you like, but if you haven’t done it in real time for a guest, it doesn’t matter.

Because that is what this industry is really all about: hospitality. It isn’t a laboratory for scientific discoveries or a barista competition for the best latte art, what matters is how you treat the person in front of you. It took me a while to truly learn this. It took me switching fields and bartending to see just how important the human experience is. You can have two people make the same exact cocktail but the experience with the guest is what will affect what they remember. They may even tell you one drink is better than the other, it’s happened before and I wish I were joking. But that is why we’re in this business. We want to make a positive impact on people’s lives, and coffee or tea or whatever you’re ordering that day is just a vehicle to do it.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If I had a friend come visit almost everything would revolve around coffee and cocktails. Start the morning off with a quick surf session to get some exercise in early, but mostly to look cool when we go to Daydream Coffee in Costa Mesa. It’s a coffee and surf shop with a bunch of little knick knacks and is just a fun space to run into friends. Next would probably be some tacos at either Taco Mesa or this taco truck at secret location only locals know.

Depending on what they like to do we will either go thrift shopping at Saver’s or Goodwill, or if they’re a little nerdy (like me) we will go hunt for books at BookOff.

Then it’s up the coast!

We’ll start with a quick pitstop in Long Beach. We’ll absolutely have to go to Gusto Bread, or Colossus if it’s already late in the day. If we are needing a heartier lunch / snack, we’ll cruise over to Good Time Coffee for another coffee and chorizo breakfast burritos. They cook them with a fried egg inside that pops when you bite in. We’d either go down to the boardwalk and stop off at a few bars in the evening: Baby G’s, Rosemallow’s, or if we’re feeling tiki, then Bamboo Club. Or, make our way to LA for some dinner at Sticky Rice, a beverage at Death&Co. then a movie at either BrainDead theater or Tarantino’s movie theater for an old movie on 35mm film. That’s it! Head back home after the perfect day.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would not be pursuing my dreams and goals if it weren’t for the love and support from my wife, Lorena. She’s taught me to trust myself, my talent, and ultimately, that I’m not defined by my status nor success.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mezcla.coffee/