We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sookyung Kim a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sookyung, so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
Not sure that I have! What I can say is that the longer I spend time doing e.g., researching the industry, studying other businesses, networking etc. at some point I become a little more comfortable in sharing my own knowledge and experience. As a new entrepreneur in a difficult industry like farming, I will always feel I’m swimming against the current.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Hog Heaven Coffee was borne by accident. My husband’s dream was to live in Hawaii, I left my job early in order to support his dream. We ended up purchasing property that had coffee trees, previous owners had not yet started it as a business. We decided to give it a try. Our first time being farmers, being an entrepreneur, and starting something from scratch. We’re avid coffee drinkers but had no thoughts about how they’re made. First couple of years, my husband built the infrastructure and cultivated the coffee trees while I tried to understand the marketing and promoting the coffee produced. It’s been about five years since we sold our first bag of roasted coffee and it’s has been a long and winding road, still. We’re able to say we’re vertically integrated, meaning we plant the coffee trees, hand pick each ripe coffee cherry, process (pulp, sort, wash, dry), mill, and roast and package all at our farm. The roast is done in small batches so that each order is fulfilled with the freshest coffees. We drink our own because we simply don’t care for the tastes of other (esp store-bought) coffees.
As part of our business, we offer coffee farm tours – our unique feature is that like our small batch roasts, it’s a personalize journey for those who visit us. We only accept small numbers of guests where we walk them thru the coffee process while providing a sample to taste. The feedback is they are enlightened and appreciate the the education…had no idea how coffee is processed and packaged, plus plus how much they enjoyed the great taste of our coffee. We feel gratified that we can share our farmers’ experience and have the customers understand what it takes to make one cup of coffee.
Additionally, our farm is our home which includes our dogs and cows, all rescues. Our dogs are the first to greet each guest. So it really is a genuine home atmosphere
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Being a coffee farmer doesn’t necessarily take specific skills or knowledge. But like everything else in life you need to be open minded, be willing to learn what it takes and actually do it. You will gain the skills and knowledge as you proceed. Success is defined by you, not others. Like life, it’s a journey, enjoy it, savor it every day.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
Hawaii is a remote place and while it’s a dream destination for many, it’s a difficult place to do business. Collaboration that helps promote the beauty of Hawaii while not endangering its native habitat would be ideal. In our case, collaborating with businesses that promote local agriculture businesses would be super helpful. From including our farm in write-ups of things to do in Hawaii, visiting coffee farms, etc. Best way to connect is probably DM vis Instagram. I’ve had cold calls/emails but I can never be sure it’s not a, scam but that’s another way.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.hogheavencoffee.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hogheavencoffee
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hogheavencoffee
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@hogheavencoffee
