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price matters. But don't just look at the per-pound price. Look at the total package. Does the roaster offer training? Do they provide marketing materials? Do they give you a discount on equipment? Do they offer free delivery? Factor all of these into the total cost. I made the mistake of going with the cheapest roaster in my first year. It was a national brand. The coffee was okay. It wasn't great. But it was consistent. And it was cheap. I switched to a local roaster in year two. The coffee was significantly better. My customers noticed. My sales went up by 15%. And the relationship was so much better. The roaster came to my café and gave my staff a training session. He helped me design a custom blend for my café. He even promoted me on his social media. The price was higher, but the value was higher too. Here's another thing: you need to think about the coffee as part of your brand. Are you a specialty café with single-origin pour-overs? Then you need a specialty roaster. Are you a high-volume café with great drip coffee? Then a national roaster might be fine. Match the roaster to your concept. And don't forget about decaf. You need to have decaf beans available. And they need to be good. Too many cafés serve terrible decaf because they think nobody will notice. People notice. Decaf drinkers are loyal customers—they have to be, because decent decaf is so hard to find. If you give them good decaf, they'll come back every day. Finally, think about sustainable practices. More and more customers care about where their coffee comes from. They care about fair trade, organic, and shade-grown. They care about the environment and the farmers. If your roaster has certifications—Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance, Organic—promote that. It's good for business and it's good for the world.