K-Cups, K-Cups, & K-Cups….
When all the experts say there will be highs and lows when launching a new product, please believe them! We are exactly one-year post-launch for our exclusive Black Coffee K-Cups, and we have seen and experienced it all within this short period! The sheer support from customers and the desire to help us improve our product is what we appreciate most, but our commitment to quality and meeting our customer expectations, is what keeps us up at night.
In true Black Coffee fashion, we come to you as transparent as ever, discussing some of the many trials and triumphs we’ve had since launching our K-Cup line. From sealing quality issues (learning that grounds are good... as long as they’re contained), to shipping delays and managing order deliveries that are no longer in our possession, we have learned a great deal. By the way, special shout out to those of you who received multiple orders of K-Cups while we figured out our tracking and fulfillment system. We hope you enjoyed the lagniappe and were able to share a few cups with a friend 😊.
The biggest lesson to date has been to always have dual sources for raw materials. Supply chain management is an entire Bachelor’s degree worth of information. Primary and secondary suppliers also have suppliers, and the pandemic has affected all of them, which ultimately impacts you! If you noticed on our website, over the past few weeks, our K-Cups have been out of stock. This is primarily due to quality issues and our label supplier sending unapproved material. Our “5-Why” analysis determined the root cause for this as only having a single supplier. While the correct lids are incoming within the week, we’ve had to absorb nearly 4 weeks of downtime, keep customers happy while they wait, and offer refunds. Our subscribers have been Champions and our transparency in the face of business interruption is our way leveling with you all, hoping to build your trust!
We love the growth and are pushing hard to build up our capabilities for business continuity and bulk supply (we have a bunch of iron in the fire). Please continue to hold us to a high standard and know that all your feedback is greatly appreciated and incorporated into our day-to-day operations. We love you, and we hope to be back very soon!