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ABOUT US--Meet Gary and Mike
The idea of roasting coffee and brewing espresso drinks from an espresso cart in a grocery store began to form. My naivete, foolishness and general lack of solid business experience didn’t stop me, though they did make life pretty dang tough for 18 months. But the amazing, fresh coffee I roasted and my customers who loved it was what saved me, and Louisville, and soon the world. I learned that espresso carts don’t work too well here in Louisville. But Mike and I have created some wonderful coffee here since our first store opened in October 1994. Now we have three stores open, soon to be four and we’re creating coffee magic. I have four children under eight years old. They know a heck of a lot more than I did at their age. For example, they love tofu and they ask me to brew them tea. And around our house, that means whole leaf tea, a hearty India Assam or a China Yunnan. I’m happy they can grow up around the tea and coffee business because it’s all about doing your best. And even if none of my kids follow me into this business, at least they’ll know the incredible coffees and teas of the world. Guess that’s a big reason why I love my job. "Life’s too short to drink crummy coffee." I didn’t invent that statement but I sure believe it.
MIKE MAYS
In putting together the plan for Heine Brothers' Coffee, we felt strongly that if we offered truly fresh-roasted coffee in a clean, friendly and relaxing environment, people would support us. Our rabidly loyal customers have proven we were right on the mark. It's good to be known around town as "the coffee guy,"
and it's nice not having to keep track of my time in six minute
increments! |
In
1991, I was looking for an interesting, perhaps exciting, business
to replace the copywriting I was doing. I had always loved espresso
and searched it out in the cities I lived in and visited. My hometown,
Louisville, Kentucky, had no great, fresh coffee, no espresso
carts, no special coffee houses. So I began to taste coffee from
around the country and keep notes on each one in a notebook. The
amazing differences in coffee, the varieties and qualities, the
flavors and aromas, began to reveal themselves to me. 
I
am an ex-lawyer who got hooked on great coffee while living in
the heart of California's wine country. When I returned to Kentucky
in early 1993, there were no small roasters, and getting a real
cup of coffee or patronizing anything resembling a coffee house
was practically impossible. Gary and I decided to change this.