Pierce County coffee roaster, known at farmers markets, will close this week
A coffee company that has been quietly roasting in north Sumner since 2019, selling also at recurring events including the Puyallup Farmers Market, will close on Friday.
Larry and Michelle Kuhns hosted a final farewell party and warehouse sale at their Kabaty Coffee, tucked into an industrial park just east of state Route 167, April 19. They offered deals on beans and equipment, including the sale of a commercial grinder, cold-brew equipment and a laser printer.
Loyal customers from around the South Sound beyond Pierce County made the trip, according to their recap post on Thursday, including from Mukilteo, Kirkland, Port Orchard, Woodinville, Kirkland and “even up from Portland,” they wrote.
The owners did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the decision.
The couple has operated Kabaty Coffee (Mount Peak Roasting LLC) since 2019 under the mantra, “Love the Earth. Embrace its people.” The idea blossomed when they returned to the United States in 2017 after years abroad, according to the company website.
Larry was a teacher, and the family lived in Saudi Arabia, Sumatra, Poland and the United Arab Emirates. Kabaty is named after the Polish forest near their one-time home, and it was in Dubai that Larry purchased his first home-roasting machine. After retiring, they turned to coffee.
In a 2022 TNT Diner poll, Kabaty landed several tallies in a heavily split-vote category of some two-dozen roasters. The brand shipped beans directly to customers nationwide, roasting to order, and offered custom wholesale roasts and personalized labels for wedding gifts and party favors, according to its Yelp page and listings on wedding websites The Knot and Wedding Wire. The couple also hosted private events at the roastery.
On April 9, they shared on social media that the business — especially in prioritizing fair-trade purchasing and managing higher costs all around — was no longer sustainable for them.
“Sustainability, for both our customers as well as everyone in the coffee supply chain, has always been a part of our core values,” they wrote. “It’s a mix of providing a high quality product at an affordable price, while making sure that everyone else is receiving a sustainable and fair wage. With all the newer cost increases associated with the roasting business, we feel we can no longer provide our product at a competitive and sustainable price.”
They thanked longtime customers for choosing them when there are copious coffee roasters, many local, on shelves and available via mail subscriptions today.
The online shop will shut down at noon on Friday, April 25.