About 20 months ago, Mike and Linda left Austin, Texas and moved to Arizona. After 20 years in the corporate world (global Coca Cola), Mike left it all behind and he and Linda bought a small coffee shop in Pinetop, and the rest is history. Pinetop Coffee and Roasting Company, serves some of the freshest and most delicious coffee on the mountain. “It has been the experience of a lifetime!” Mike tells me. “It has been so much fun and we have met the greatest people in this town!” This is proof that 20 months in the White Mountains beats 20 years in corporate.  

Mike had been thinking about leaving corporate for a while. After his daughter bought a house in Show Low, they would come and visit. That’s when they discovered that Beth Wagner, former owner of the Pinetop Coffee House, was selling her business. After a short conversation with Wagner, about six months later he and Linda owned a coffee shop. 

Mike also worked for a coffee and water company (the parent company for Sparkletts), where He learned all about the origins of coffee, beans, and cupping coffee as well as what to look for in coffee, but he never roasted. When he bought the business, part of the transaction included training by Wagner. He has become so passionate about roasting that he recently bought a larger roaster that they affectionately call the “Big Green Roasting Machine.” Their investment in this new roaster has increased production giving them the capability to keep plenty of roasted coffee in stock for their retail shop as well as their commercial/wholesale business.  

Mike hits the streets to find businesses that could use his locally roasted coffee. One of his greatest attributes is his dependability. It’s a big fear of some consumers that his business is too small to be able to meet their needs. However, if you talk to any of his present commercial or retail customers they would assure you that they certainly live up to the highest quality reputation. Cafe Pinoli, Sweetheart Cafe, Darbi’s, Pinetop Country Club, Forest Lakes and Woods Canyon General Stores are just a few of the many businesses that provide some of his fresh roasted coffee, both by the cup and by the bag. They would love to expand their wholesale business which would include restaurants, VRBOS, or any commercial business that serves coffee either to their customers or employees.

They are also working with a marketing company to expand their online presence and a search engine optimization company for social media and their website. Through their website, they ship coffee all over the country, including Hawaii and Alaska.

They’ve done a lot of things to improve the experience here. This past year they invested in new coffee brewer technology, a new espresso machine technology to make better quality drinks and to get them out the door faster. They expanded their merchandise with Air Scapes (for air-free coffee storage), French press cups and French presses, gift baskets and gift bags, local honey, coffee-flavored peanut brittle and hot chocolate bombs. They try to listen very carefully to what their customers are saying and have a great following. They have been blessed with outstanding reviews online. Recently they hired a new employee named Natalie, a high school student who works weekends. “She is a reflection of us.” Mike says. “She is a happy, engaging, customer service oriented individual and a lot of fun to have in the shop.”

“I love this place!” Mike tells me. “It would be hard to get me out of her,” and it’s true. Mike and Linda only take four days off each year, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Day and Easter. After Easter, there is a 235-day stretch until their next day off. 

Mike says coffee is a great business to be in because people come here looking for happiness and we deliver that to them. It comes in the form of some of the freshest, delicious coffee drinks on the mountain and a friendly atmosphere. And the best part? They put a large chocolate-covered coffee bean on every lid.