RULE 40

Small-town coffee can be really great.

The coffee quality in small towns can be just as good, for a fraction of the cost in bigger cities.

Small-town coffeehouses have always been there, but today’s raw materials—and especially quality green coffee, the raw coffee beans before they’re roasted—have never been more readily available for budding coffee entrepreneurs. Remember, this stuff all comes from Ethiopia, Colombia, and other producing countries in the first place (see Rule 2); coffee does not discriminate against its final destination, be it Midtown Manhattan or Manhattan, Kansas. In small towns, the coffee quality can be just as good, for a fraction of the cost in bigger cities, and whether you’re an owner, a patron just passing through, or an ardent regular, the ability to connect intimately with the local community is unmatched.

Just as a small sampling, Chillicothe, Ohio (population 21,000) has Rost Coffee; Cottleville, Missouri (population 3,000) is home to VB Chocolate; Ipswich, Massachusetts (pop. 13,750) is home to Little Wolf Coffee; Nelsonville, Wisconsin (population 191) has Ruby Coffee Roasters; and Port Townsend, Washington (population 9,000) has the new Velocity. And it’s not just the United States. The tiny parish of Udny, in rural Scotland, is home to Coffee Apothecary; the far-flung Faroe Islands have Brell Cafe; and the northern Norwegian town of Stjørdal is home to Langøra, a progressive and delicious coffee roasting company.

Big cities, small towns—we aren’t so different. Everyone wants good coffee, and this is a trend that shows no sign of slowing.