A retired Des Moines couple has launched an online coffee fundraising business inspired by a sermon at their local church, with the goal of helping charitable organizations generate ongoing revenue.
Tony and Tacie Todd, founders of Beans For Sharing and members of Hope Church on 19th Avenue South in Des Moines, said their business was inspired by a sermon from Pastor Pat urging congregants to use their individual gifts to love and serve others.
“A year and just a few months more, we listened to a sermon from Pastor Pat; ‘You’ve all been given Gifts, think about how you might use those Gifts to love and serve others,’” founder Tony told The Waterland Blog.
After retiring, the couple said they felt blessed and able to give back. With a background in self employment spanning 47 years, Tony said he began thinking about starting a business that would raise funds and give away its profits.
“Myself being self employed most of my 47 working career years, thought … gosh why don’t we start a business that raises funds and gives away all its profits,” Tony said, noting that many seniors enjoy volunteering and do not necessarily need additional income.
Beans For Sharing operates as an online store designed to serve as a fundraising platform. According to the founders, seller participants receive 30 percent of their gross sales at the end of each calendar month. The company says its long term goal is to give away 100 percent of profits, though startup costs and inventory expenses have so far limited that effort.
“Our concept is: While most online sellers exist to serve shareholders, BFS exists to serve charitable organizations,” Tony said.
The founders describe their mission as providing a platform that almost anyone can use as a quality fundraiser, offering high quality products at competitive prices so they can be purchased repeatedly and provide continuous fundraising income.
Their business background includes Denver Coffee and Fine Foods, Farmer Bros Custom Coffee in Seattle, work as a FedEx contracted service provider from 1988 to 2021, BeachyDayVacation rentals from 1998 to 2008, and serving as publisher of the Official Guide to the Cranberry Coast from 2007 to 2010. He said he met his wife while delivering to the King County Correctional Facility and describes himself as a regular guy with a high school education supplemented by classes from SCORE and accounting knowledge learned from older brothers’ books.
The business also includes family involvement. The couple’s granddaughter designs t-shirts under the label Furtue Bears, and other family members assist with the venture.
“Love is the virtue that will lead to all other virtues. If you have Love, you will be motivated to have; kindness, patience, forgiveness, generosity, self control, honesty, empathy, and more,” their website says.
The couple said they hope Beans For Sharing will provide a modern alternative to traditional fundraising models, allowing schools, churches, nonprofits and community groups across south King County to generate residual income through online sales.
For more info, visit https://beansforsharing.com.
