Starting a specialty coffee roastery is a business of compressed timelines and long lead times — green coffee takes weeks to source and arrive, roaster equipment can take months to procure and install, and brand awareness in a crowded market takes years to build. A Gantt chart doesn't accelerate these realities, but it makes them visible. You see which activities must happen sequentially (roaster installation must precede production roasting), which can happen in parallel (brand development while waiting on equipment delivery), and which have silent lead times that will delay your opening if you start them late.
Phase 1: Business Model and Market Research (Weeks 1–3)
The specialty coffee market has distinct channels with different margin structures, capital requirements, and competitive dynamics. Define your primary channel before you size your equipment.
Revenue channel options: The main paths for an independent roastery are direct-to-consumer (DTC) via e-commerce, retail (branded bags in grocery and specialty stores), wholesale (supply to coffee shops and restaurants), subscription (recurring DTC with roast customization), and retail café (combining roastery and café in one location). Most successful small roasteries combine two channels: wholesale plus subscription, or retail café plus DTC.
Market positioning: Specialty coffee is intensely regional in its early stages. Research the wholesale landscape in your area — how many roasteries are already supplying local coffee shops? What's your differentiation: sourcing relationships (direct trade, single-origin focus), roast style (light/Nordic, medium, dark-roast focused), or a specific origin or farm relationship? Generic positioning in a mature specialty coffee market is not viable.
Regulatory research: Coffee roasting generates smoke and particulate emissions. Many municipalities classify commercial roasters as air quality sources that require an air quality permit or afterburner compliance. Research this before you commit to a location — the requirements vary significantly by jurisdiction and can affect your equipment selection (you may need a catalytic afterburner on your roaster).
Gantt milestone: Business model defined, competitive positioning established, regulatory requirements identified.
Phase 2: Equipment Procurement (Weeks 2–12)
Roasting equipment is the longest lead-time item in the project. Order early.
Roaster selection: Commercial roasters are categorized by batch size. A 1-kilogram sample roaster is for development only. A 5-kilogram roaster ($10,000–$25,000 used, $20,000–$50,000 new) is appropriate for a micro-roastery producing up to 200–400 pounds per week. A 12-kilogram roaster ($35,000–$80,000) supports 600–1,200 pounds per week — appropriate for a roastery with established wholesale accounts. A 30-kilogram roaster ($80,000–$200,000) is appropriate for regional distributors and larger operations.
New roasters from major manufacturers (Probat, Loring, Diedrich, Mill City) currently have lead times of 12–18 months. Used equipment in good condition can often be sourced and installed in 4–8 weeks. If you're opening within 12 months, plan for a used roaster unless you have an existing order in place.
Roaster installation requirements: A commercial roaster needs a dedicated gas line (sized to the BTU requirements of your roaster), a commercial exhaust system with stack and afterburner if required, and a concrete pad or load-bearing floor (roasters are heavy — a 30kg Probat weighs over 2,000 pounds). The installation requires a licensed gas plumber and mechanical contractor. Factor 2–4 weeks for utility connections and inspections.
Supporting equipment: You'll also need a green coffee storage system (pallets, bags, bulk bins depending on volume), cooling tray extensions if your roaster's built-in cooling is undersized, a destoner for removing small rocks from green coffee before roasting, packaging equipment (manual bag sealer at minimum, semi-automatic volumetric filler for higher volumes), and a sample roaster for development.
Roasting software: Cropster and Artisan are the two dominant roast tracking platforms. Set up your roasting software before your first production roasts — the development phase data is valuable.
Gantt milestone: Roaster ordered, installation infrastructure in place, supporting equipment sourced.
Phase 3: Location and Facility (Weeks 2–8)
Roastery location requirements are dictated by your roaster and your zoning.
Zoning: Commercial roasting is typically classified as light manufacturing. Verify that your intended space allows this use. Many urban retail spaces do not permit the combustion equipment and ventilation infrastructure required for roasting.
Utilities: Natural gas (or propane as an alternative) at sufficient capacity for your roaster, three-phase electrical if required by your equipment, and adequate ventilation stack clearance above the roofline. Get utility specifications from your roaster manufacturer before signing a lease.
Square footage: A micro-roastery producing 200–400 pounds per week can function in 600–1,000 square feet (roaster, green coffee storage, packaging, finished goods storage). Add 400–600 square feet if you're incorporating a retail café or tasting room.
Landlord disclosure: Be transparent with prospective landlords about the roasting operation. Many landlords are unfamiliar with roastery requirements and discover them during the lease process. Early disclosure prevents lease negotiations collapsing after you've spent money on design and legal work.
Gantt milestone: Lease signed, utility connections confirmed, building permits submitted.
Phase 4: Green Coffee Sourcing (Weeks 4–12)
Your green coffee sourcing relationships define your product.
Importers and traders: Most small roasteries start by purchasing through importers (Cafe Imports, Genuine Origin, Red Fox, Mercanta, Nordic Approach) who have established relationships with farms and cooperatives. Importer catalogs change seasonally — build your initial menu from what's available and cupped at your quality standard.
Direct trade: Direct relationships with farms and cooperatives offer better economics at scale and stronger storytelling, but require minimum purchase commitments (typically 1–3 bags / 60–150 kg), advance purchase (crops are sold before harvest), and a longer timeline to establish. Not realistic in year one for most roasteries, but a goal worth building toward.
Sample cupping: Before you commit to a green coffee purchase, cup samples. Request samples from at least three to five origins you're considering. Your opening menu should reflect genuine quality and selection, not just what was easy to source.
Inventory management: Green coffee has a shelf life — most specialty greens are at peak within 12 months of harvest. Don't overstock. A new roastery should maintain 30–60 days of green inventory rather than 90–180 days.
Gantt milestone: Opening menu confirmed, first green coffee orders placed.
Phase 5: Brand and Packaging Development (Weeks 4–14)
Specialty coffee is a design-intensive category. Packaging communicates quality before the coffee is tasted.
Brand identity: Your roastery name, logo, color palette, and visual language need to be resolved before you design packaging. Work with a designer who understands the specialty coffee market — the category has strong visual conventions (minimalist typography, single-origin photo, tasting notes) that you can work within or deliberately subvert.
Bag selection and printing: Coffee bags are typically custom printed with a minimum order of 500–2,500 units per SKU. Lead times for custom printed bags run 4–8 weeks. Select your bag supplier and submit artwork early in the process. Common formats are 12oz/340g flat-bottom bags for retail, 5-pound bags for wholesale, and 2oz/60g tasting sets.
Label compliance: Coffee labels must include net weight, country of origin (for imports), and allergen information. If you're making specific health claims, consult with an FDA compliance specialist.
Website and e-commerce: Launch your website with online ordering before you open. Shopify is the de facto platform for specialty coffee DTC — it integrates with subscription platforms (ReCharge, Skio) and shipping software (ShipStation). Set up subscriptions from day one even if your subscription volume is small.
Gantt milestone: Brand identity complete, bags ordered, website with e-commerce live.
Phase 6: Wholesale Account Development (Weeks 8–20)
Wholesale revenue anchors a roastery's financial model.
Account targeting: Identify coffee shops, restaurants, and specialty food retailers within a reasonable delivery radius. In most metro areas, 20–50 accounts generating an average of $300–$800/month is a viable wholesale book for a small roastery. Focus on quality-first accounts — coffee shops that compete on quality of product rather than on price.
Sampling and sales process: The standard wholesale sales process is: introduction → sample set → cupping or tasting → wholesale agreement. Move through this process systematically. Track your pipeline and follow up consistently.
Wholesale pricing: Specialty wholesale pricing is typically retail price minus 40–50% for larger accounts, 30–40% for smaller accounts. Protect your margins — wholesale accounts that negotiate below your cost structure hurt the business regardless of volume.
Account support: New wholesale accounts need more than coffee — they need training on brewing parameters, equipment maintenance guidance, and responsive communication. Plan for how you'll support accounts before you sell them.
Gantt milestone: Minimum five wholesale accounts signed, first production deliveries made.
The Critical Path
Equipment procurement is the longest lead-time dependency. Everything else — brand, sourcing, location, licensing — can proceed in parallel, but production roasting cannot start until the roaster is installed and passing inspections. Map your equipment lead time first, then work backward to determine when everything else needs to be complete.
The second critical dependency is cupping and developing your roast profiles. Roast development requires weeks of iteration on each coffee — you need multiple production-quality samples before you're satisfied with a profile for a coffee you're going to sell. This work begins the moment your roaster is operational and should not be rushed.
A roastery launched with a clear channel strategy, distinctive sourcing, strong packaging, and an active wholesale pipeline will generate compounding revenue as accounts grow and subscriptions build. The Gantt chart keeps all of these parallel tracks visible and keeps the critical equipment and licensing milestones from being missed.