At the NūStory Coffee roastery in Nixa, Missouri. All images courtesy of Nūstory.
A coffee roasting company based in southwestern Missouri called NūStory Coffee recently launched with a distinct focus on high-quality coffees from Guatemala.
Based just south of Springfield in Nixa, the coffee company’s own origin story begins with its founders Graham and Susy Goshinmon, who have deep roots in the Central American country.
As NūStory’s green coffee buyer and head roaster, Graham Goshinmon oversees a turquoise Diedrich IR-5 machine in a 1,200-square-foot roastery. An initial selection of coffees from Guatemala and other select origin countries was sourced through Covoya and Kansas City-based Kapeh Utz. Goshinmon is also expecting greens purchased directly from producers in Guatemala — including a Java variety coffee from Mario Rene Friely Paredes of Finca La Canoa — to arrive this month.
“There’s not too many that grow Java in Guatemala, and he does,” Graham said. “I’ve got a natural Java coming in from him that I roast and sell by itself.”
Born in Calgary, Alberta, Graham’s first chapter in Guatemala launched in 1991 when he moved there at the age of eight with his missionary parents. Eventually, he met Susy Beltranena Orive, whose family’s involvement in Guatemalan coffee production dates back over a century.
The couple married in Calgary in 2006 and lived there for 10 years while Graham Goshinmon worked in corporate sales and logistics. The couple then relocated back to Guatemala.
In 2020, when Susy’s California-based uncle was unable to manage a coffee farm he owned due to Guatemala’s countrywide COVID-19 shutdowns, Graham stepped in to help.
“That’s where I just started to learn, having been thrown in the deep end,” Graham Goshinmon told DCN. “I learned a lot about the plants, how to take care of them, and then it came up to the harvest. So that’s where I cut my teeth a little bit on the producer side.”
Over several years tending the farm, Goshinmon sought advice from other producers on best practices for productivity, sustainability and quality. He delivered cherries to the mill, prepared coffees for shipment, and through contacts with equipment companies he had worked with before, started tinkering with roasting, again turning to Guatemalan contacts for tips along the way.
“I’ve talked with a lot of people like Raul Rodas from Paradigma Coffee, [Guatemalan barista champion and roaster] Teco Echeverria — just super nice guys. I’m not super close with them, but whenever I had a question, they’ve always been there to help,” said Goshinmon. “Diego Aguilar has also helped me with a couple roasts, and it’s just awesome to have that support from the Guatemalan community where I grew up but also lived for the past eight-and-a-half, nine years.”
Nixa was chosen for proximity to family, a fondness for the area developed during Graham’s college days, plus the potential for economic development.
“I always liked the place, and there’s great opportunity here,” said Graham. “Also, I wanted to be able to move into an area where I could be a positive impact and provide a job in a small town. Guatemala City is a massive city of eight million people, and we were kind of tired of that and just wanted a slower pace of life.”
Susy takes the lead on in-person retail, primarily at Springfield-area farmers markets. NūStory offerings are currently transitioning out of kraft bags into custom-printed packages. As it continues to sell directly to consumers online, the company also plans to scale up grocery sales and wholesale.
Upgrading into higher-capacity roasting equipment is on the to-do list, and it’s all in the interest of bringing higher volumes of directly traded green coffees to the U.S.
“The main goal in the future is definitely to broker and bring in coffee for other roasters, because the whole point of this project is to provide different options for coffee out there,” said Graham. “You’re going to find some great coffees from Guatemala from the larger importers. But there’s so many coffee producers out there and some incredible ones that are just a little smaller. I’d really like to be able to shine a light on those guys and show what they’re producing.”
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Howard Bryman
Howard Bryman is the associate editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine. He is based in Portland, Oregon.
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