Robert Myers, Rich Avella and Eric Hashimoto started Highwire Coffee Roasters in 2011 after long careers in coffee working for other folks.

We wanted to be more welcoming to more people than what we felt 3rd wave coffee shops were generally doing at that time. The guiding idea was we wanted a place we could bring our moms and dads without them feeling alienated or put off by any kind of exclusive feel of our shop. We wanted our long years of coffee experience to show in the expertly sourced, roasted, and served coffee drinks. 

By about 2012, we found a roast point of view that we found satisfying. Balanced between the brightness and sweetness of origin, with the body and mouthfeel the roast can bring out. We paired this with our first logo and brand images designed by a former barista of ours and were on our way.

In 2016, we launched our sister brand 4track tea as a way to highlight our love of tea, particularly co-founder Rich Avella's. The idea was to center the sensory pleasure innate in tea drinking rather than continuing to link it to health foods, or the traditions that weren't our own. We source classically produced teas of exceptional quality and create our blends in house. 

In 2021, longtime coffee buyer, and co-founder Eric Hashimoto retired and the two remaining founders used this moment to look ahead. To re-imagine what we wanted to create going forward rather than holding onto our past. We hired current coffee buyer Steve Ford in part because we shared a vision to take our coffee to an even higher level of quality, transparency, and green coffee freshness. 

 

Rich and Robert on National Coffee Day

 

Now in 2023 we have launched what we are calling Highwire 2.0 to reflect a new look and feel, as well as a reorientation in our company culture. We worked with designer, Elizabeth Vereker to capture this new energy with both Highwire and 4 track tea. Grounded in the energy and sensory experience of music, forward looking, optimistic and much more colorful than anything that came before, we are excited for what comes next, and hope you are as well.