Step aside, espresso!
Cold brew has become one of the hottest drinks in the U.S. coffee market in recent years. According to Statistics, the total size of the cold brew coffee market was around 166 million U.S. dollars in 2017. By 2025, this figure was expected to have increased to about 944.16 million U.S. dollars.
For many coffee-loving entrepreneurs, the surge of interest in the cold brew coffee business shows a lot of promise. Motivated business owners are starting cold brew coffee brands to cater to the demand in this beverage industry segment. If you’re enjoying a cup of cold brew coffee and are ready to take the jump into self-employment, cold brew coffee may be the answer.
So, this informative guide is meant for people who want to run a cold brew coffee business, especially private label coffee. You’ll learn everything about private label cold brew coffee, as well as considerations when selling this product.
Without any further ado, we should start now!
What is cold brew coffee, actually?
Cold brew is made by slowly steeping coarsely ground coffee brands in room temperature water for at least 6 hours (it can be as much as 24, but it really depends on how strong you’d like it to be; many often choose to do it overnight). When the coffee beans are steeped like this, it can create a strong coffee concentrate that just needs mixing with water and milk to taste.
As the grounds are not exposed to hot temperatures, cold brew coffee generally has a more flavorful, sweeter, as well as less bitter and acidic taste. A recent study shows that cold brew coffee is between 50-67% less acidic than the average cup of coffee.
It is a common belief that cold brew coffee has to be cold; in fact, it can be served piping hot, too! If you want it cold, add cold water, ice, and milk (to taste). And for hot, boil water or add hot milk (some will even pop it in the microwave if they are in a rush).
Due to the fact it is a coffee concentrate, many think that cold brew coffee has more caffeine content than the average cup. But the reality is that as you dilute this concentrate, the caffeine level drops.
The earliest version of cold brew coffee was called “Kyoto,” and it dates back to Japan in the 1600s. It was a trendy drink in the city, so much so that people eventually made cold brew coffee machines and a spectacle out of brewing this beverage in public places.
There’s been some argument about whether cold brew was invented in Japan. Many believe it was introduced to the country by Dutch traders that developed the process to transport a large amount of strong coffee that could later be enjoyed cold or be reheated.
Interestingly, there have been some documented accounts of cold brew being used for war rations too. That makes sense as the brewing method requires little equipment and far less coffee.
What is private label cold brew coffee?
Firstly, private labeling enables you to source coffee beans from a supplier, often with the option to tweak the blend, and sell the coffee online (or in-person) with your own branding, marketing, and pricing.
So, private label cold brew coffee means you partner with an established supplier to produce exceptional cold brew under your own label and brand.
You may approach a coffee supplier to create unique cold brew coffee that you believe your customers would enjoy. For example, you could request specific flavor profiles, roasting methods, custom labels, and so on until you’re satisfied. From here, this cold brew coffee product will be sold under a new identity and brand.
Why should you consider selling private label cold brew coffee?
Whether you are an online entrepreneur selling coffee over the Internet or an established business, private label cold brew coffee gives you a distinct advantage to help further your brand. It can create a niche in your market that sets you apart.
After all, the way to be successful is by building your brand and establishing yourself in this ever-changing industry. Your brand is what your consumers bond with. And in today’s competitive world, you need to set yourself apart from the crowd.
It can be really challenging to do everything yourself, from sourcing coffee beans and storing your products to making cold brew coffee and looking for a designer and printing service. Lots of work ahead!
Below are several reasons why you should consider selling private label cold brew coffee:
- Private label cold brew coffee helps you save time, money, and effort. All you need to do is search for and contact an experienced coffee supplier, and they’ll do almost everything for you. It’s your task to choose cold brew coffee products, add your logo, and pick custom labels. So simple!
- Private label cold brew coffee is for brands. Whether you are an independent startup or an established name, private label cold brew coffee offers a significant advantage to help you grow and expand your brand. Private label suppliers ensure your coffee is exclusively branded to your business. In addition, they often offer various services, such as toll-roasting, roast-to-order, packaging, custom labeling, etc.
- Private label cold brew coffee can be the product for an entrepreneur. If you are an emerging entrepreneur, it’s essential to get your foot in the door of this competitive industry. The best way is to establish your private label cold brew coffee as an exceptional product. This works, especially when cold brew coffee is one of the most common drinks worldwide.
- Private label cold brew coffee creates loyal customers. An established brand with an excellent reputation is what you desire to set yourself apart. That is because customers turn to brands they know and trust. When customers love your cold brew, then you have earned their loyalty.
- Private label cold brew coffee can be a great promotional item for businesses. Many people love cold brew coffee. If you are finding a fun and unique promotional item for your business, look no further than private label cold brew. You can create a distinct product to utilize in your marketing campaign or as a corporate gift.
6 considerations when selling private label cold brew coffee
This section will show you some key points to consider when selling private label cold brew coffee.
1. Search for a high-quality, reliable supplier
The private label suppliers will be providing the cold brew coffee product you’ll be focused on selling. While in most ways you’re their customer, it’s probably better to think of them as a partner. The better a relationship you develop, the more you’ll find your product and retailing operation improve.
Most private label suppliers go beyond simply offering coffee beans. In order to secure private label clients, many of them offer different services, including custom roasting, packaging, as well as access to experts who can help you make decisions in developing the product that reflects the brand you’re looking to build. Many suppliers also offer a choice of blends they have already pre-selected.
Since these suppliers are also responsible for importing the coffee beans from their place of origin, they’ll also take on the burden of various certifications one can acquire. Depending on your brand and priorities, certifications like “Organic,” “Fair Trade,” and “Bird-friendly” are likely ones you will want to inquire about.
You should ask some other questions when selecting a supplier:
- Do they offer wholesale pricing? Some suppliers don’t offer wholesale pricing. If not, it’ll cut into your profit margin. It’s vital to know if the supplier provides wholesale pricing or at least a discount.
- Are there any additional fees? Some coffee suppliers will charge a one-time or monthly fee to do private labeling.
- Do you need to supply your own bags or labels? Many suppliers don’t provide bags or labels. If some do supply, they’ll charge a fee to do so. You will need to find out if you have to mail in your bags/labels or if they supply the bags and print your labels for a fee.
2. Customize your coffee labels
When looking into sourcing your private label cold brew coffee, one essential consideration will be which options are available as far as custom labels.
Luckily, most suppliers offer some level of customization as the primary purpose of the “private label” strategy is to allow you to sell the coffee and build your own brand. Beyond simply including your company’s logo, many will consist of customer artwork and labeling on the packages for each type of coffee.
There are multiple coffee bag designers to choose from. When starting out, you don’t need to spend a lot of money up-front. Instead, you can search for low-cost options, such as finding a coffee label or bag designer on Upwork/Fiverr. Otherwise, if you’ve got enough budget, you can go with 99designs. It works by simply submitting your specifications, setting an amount, and then professional designers will compete for your brand.
You can always start with a low-end design and upgrade it later.
3. Buy wholesale if possible
Wholesale works under the premise that the supplier will achieve some economies of scale in producing the coffee in large enough quantities to offer significant discounts. Buying private label wholesale coffee means that you can purchase cold brew at a discount, leaving you more room to charge a higher price to your end consumer and achieve profitability.
Another important thing to remember is that the cost of ordering wholesale will vary significantly depending on the volume and packaging you specify. Many suppliers have order minimums, like a minimum of $1,000 worth, and the more volume you order generally means the greater the discount per package.
Packaging can make a difference as well. The deal you work with the supplier will be influenced by things like ordering coffee beans in 4lb non-descript bags, or asking for all the coffee to be made available in 10oz packages that are ready to be directly shipped and sold to the customer.
4. Market your private label cold brew coffee
With your new private label cold brew coffee in place, it’s then a matter of promoting.
You can take advantage of both free and paid marketing methods. Free marketing methods can include creating social media accounts on popular platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and more. Of course, you can run paid advertising on these channels.
Another excellent platform for marketing your private label cold brew coffee is Youtube. If you’re comfortable being on camera, it provides a fantastic opportunity to build a following and make sales. For example, consider creating videos demonstrating how to brew coffee using your beans or create other helpful coffee tutorials.
Most of your business work will be involved with marketing, thus it helps to learn a lot and apply what you learn.
5. Offer stellar customer service
The success of your brand will be significantly determined by the type of customer service you provide. Always offer stellar customer service, and you can be sure that you’ll not only have new customers but repeat customers as well.
Meanwhile, make it easy for customers to reach you. It may mean including a contact page with your business phone number and email address.
6. Consider dropshipping
Dropshipping is the practice of passing orders you receive from your website (or other sales channel) directly to a third-party company for fulfillment. Simply put, you make the sales; someone else ultimately fulfills them.
The benefits of dropshipping are that it reduces all costs associated with inventory management, packaging, and shipping. In many cases, dropshipping also means you don’t pay for the order until you make the sale.
Dropshipping is appealing for most product categories, and of course, coffee would be no exception.
Being a “food,” coffee tends to be under much more scrutiny and regulation than other products that are often used to set up a dropshipping business. Fortunately, we can confirm that dropshipping coffee is not only possible but also tends to work hand in hand with private labeling coffee as well. It takes some further digging, but you can find suppliers who will offer private label services while facilitating the dropshipping model.
You can read our ultimate dropshipping coffee guide if you would like to learn more about setting this up and making it work with private label solutions.
That brings us to the next section!
Make everything simple with Dripshipper
You want to sell high-quality private label cold brew coffee?
You want to reduce all costs associated with inventory management, packaging, and shipping?
You want to run a simple, but effective dropshipping business?
Dripshipper is right here to help you!
As a top-rated dropshipper for coffee, Dripshipper can integrate well with Shopify. In addition, Dripshipper can fulfill orders within the USA in just three days, thanks to their USA-based facilities.
Dripshipper offers high-quality & FDA-approved cold brew coffee. For more information about the quality of the coffee, you should head to this video.
To start selling private label cold brew coffee with Dripshipper, you only need to follow the 3 easy steps below:
Step 1. Upload logo and select label template
Click on “Upload Logo” and choose your logo file. We recommend uploading an image that is 1500x1500 pixels with a transparent background. The file should be PNG or JPG.
Also, ensure that you pick a label template for the free labels that come with all the coffee bags with your logo on them. (Note: Dripshipper offers no label charges.)
We’ve compiled some common logo/label issues that customers face. To avoid these issues, you should watch this short training video.
Step 2. Add products to store
Navigate to the “Add Products” section by clicking on the button in the top menu. You are selling a high-quality cold brew coffee product, so make sure that you compare your prices to those of high-end coffee brands in the market and then maximize your profits.
Once you’ve added cold brew coffee successfully, it’ll show “Imported” at the upper right corner.
Step 3. Track your orders
We will automatically ship your cold brew coffee to your customers with your logo on it. You should expect 3-5 business days at most for the coffee to be produced and shipped to your customer, though it often takes only 1-2 business days. It takes 1-5 business days to ship to your customer in the USA.
You can always go into Dripshipper and click on “Orders'' to track your order information. Tracking information is automatically added to your orders once the products ship, so there is nothing for you to do here.
Don’t worry if you find it confusing at first! We’ve included detailed guides in each step to make the process as smooth as possible. You can always contact us via in-app live chat or email.
Amazingly, Dripshipper offers a 14-day free trial, so you can test it out today before opting for a paid plan!
The bottom line
That’s it for selling private label cold brew coffee!
We hope this article has provided helpful information about private label cold brew coffee. To be honest, it’s a low-cost and easy way to start selling cold brew coffee under your brand.
Thanks for reading!
