Roasting fresh flavors
Cherrybean Coffee sells bean blends in area stores and online.
Most people avoid drinking coffee late at night, but for the families behind Cherrybean Coffee in Marion, that’s exactly when the magic happens.
Owned by Loren Johnson, Robert Bauerle, Scott Luke, and their families, the business has grown from a local name into a regional and online company.
Cherrybean Coffee roasts a variety of coffee blends that don’t taste like cherries — except for one special cherry-flavored blend. The company’s name refers to the small, round cherry-like fruits that grow in clusters on coffee trees.
Local beans, national brews
Operating on a roast-to-order model ensures maximum freshness in every batch. Each week, the families work together to roast and produce a Fair Trade Certifiedproduct, meaning the beans were made in accordance with environmental, economic, and other standards.
“We roast on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” explains Loren. “We serve grocery stores and some local folks around here. We don’t have a warehouse or shelves, and we roast to order so everything is fresh.”
Their coffee roast flavors are sold at locations for both chain and independent stores in Freeman, Watertown, Vermillion, Parker, Sioux Falls, and more. However, their reach extends far beyond South Dakota. Through their website, Cherrybean ships coffee beans across the country, serving customers in Texas, Florida, Wisconsin, and beyond.
Family-owned from the beginning
Cherrybean Coffee got its start in 2007 and has been owned by multiple families over the years. As friends since grade school, Robert and Scott researched the coffee roasting business before approaching Loren, a coworker and friend of Robert, to join the venture. The friends purchased the coffee roasting business together to support their families and serve the communities around them.
While there’s no retail location, roasting and packaging occurs in a brick building along Marion’s main road not far from the post office. The Cherrybean website also lists many nearby businesses and locations where customers can try a cup of coffee or buy beans locally. “Having grown up in a small town my whole life, it’s nice to know everybody,” says Loren. “Everyone around still feels that small-town sense of wanting to know and get along with everybody. Our communities have been really supportive of us.”
Since Loren, Scott, and Robert all work full-time jobs during the day, they often work late into the night and need additional help. Loren’s wife and children, along with Robert’s kids, pitch in to help during busy times. Whether it’s packaging, cleaning, or getting orders ready for UPS to pick up, everyone plays a role in keeping the business running smoothly.
Beans and bytes
Cherrybean Coffee relies on their internet connection for website sales, managing and processing orders, and more. Using their Golden West service, the three families can confidently do business with their online customers and the many stores they provide coffee blends for around the area as they continue to grow.
“Everything we do online depends on the internet from Golden West,” says Loren. “We haven’t had any interruptions and the folks we have worked with have been really good.”
