Jim Varney spent 25 years designing consumer products -- until he saw one of his own designs sitting in a pile of "trash" at a modern art museum, and it changed everything. Now he and his wife Deanna run Wavelength Coffee Roasters out of a solar-powered former rope mill in Shirley, Massachusetts.

In this episode, Jim and Deanna talk about the industrial design background that led to their steel-can packaging (no foil bags here), why they use air roasting instead of the 150-year-old drum roasting method, how Deanna's library science background became an unexpected business asset, and what they're calling their "spaghetti year" as they figure out what sticks. Plus, a lightning round covering pancakes vs. waffles, night owls vs. morning people, and the one thing Jim didn't expect people to be surprised about.

📍 Wavelength Coffee Roasters -- Shirley, MA

🔗 wavelengthcoffee.com

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This episode is sponsored by Belmont Hall & Restaurant.

Manchester, NH -- family-owned for over 90 years.

belmonthall.net | Instagram: @belmonthallandcatering | Facebook: @belmonthallandcatering

ABOUT BEYOND THE PLATE WITH CAROL

Carol Erickson sits down with the people behind New Hampshire's food and hospitality scene. It's not just about the food -- it's about the journeys, the community, and what drives people to go beyond.

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0:00 - Intro

1:20 - Meet Jim and Deanna Varney

2:00 - From engineering coffee equipment to running the machines

3:50 - Working retail coffee in college

5:50 - The value of working in food service

7:15 - Getting the itch to leave industrial design

9:00 - The museum moment 😳

11:00 - "Can we do something better?"

14:00 - Founding Wavelength in 2025

15:00 - Falling in love with coffee grower stories

16:10 - Deanna's library science background as a business asset

19:20 - Explaining air roasting vs. drum roasting

23:35 - The solar power story at Phoenix Park

26:30 - Finding a home in an old rope mill

29:00 - The steel can packaging decision

36:20 - Wanting to be part of the local community

38:40 - Manchester's coffee shop density

39:40 - What a coffee "cupping" actually is

1:00:20 - Lightning Round

1:03:45 - Where Wavelength wants to be in 5 years

1:04:00 - Closing thoughts