ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Rockford’s Fire Department Coffee has a connection to a prime time drama.
The company paired up with the shows “911” and “911: Lone Star.” For the first responders turned business people behind the scenes, it is a sign that they have come a long way in six years.
“Oh, it’s an honor to have a big network like that, a TV show that is so popular, have them want to reach out to you and use your product in that promotional,” said Randy James, director of brand relations at Fire Department Coffee.
Fire Department Coffee has been run by active and retired firefighters since 2016. Among them is Randy James, a Rockford firefighter that has been with the company for three years.
“They put a gift box together to send to all the FOX affiliates with our coffee in it, with a little box that kinda looks like a fire engine, and some mugs in there just to get ready for the premiere that happened last night,” James said.
They are excited and honored that FOX chose them, according to James, but that is not the only big news that the company has brewing.
“Really hoping that we can bring to the community what they have been asking for, and that a café that has all our different products in it,” James said.
Fire Department Coffee has done most of its business online, but James said that the company’s retail footprint is growing fast.
“This year is going to be a big year for the Fire Dept. Coffee major expanded retail growth, some ready to drink cans that are hopefully going to be in convenient stores locally,” James said. “We are in every Meijer in Illinois, we’re in 24 Sam’s Clubs across the country and we have some really exciting contracts that are coming that will really grow that retail even further.”
In the end, James credits their success with the company’s mission of making a great product that allows them to give back. For Fire Department Coffee, that means helping those who have been hurt on the job, whether mentally or physically.
“We’re proud to be made here,” James said. “The support at Rockford has been amazing. We are going to stay here, we will always have a presence in Rockford, Illinois.”
Inc. Magazine also named Fire Department Coffee one of the fastest growing private companies in the Midwest on top of those recent successes. It came in a number 36.
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