VIRGINIA BEACH — A Navy lieutenant has fused his love of coffee, firearms, and supporting veterans by creating his own brand for java lovers with similar ideals.
Lt. Dan Farnsworth started Threaded Barrel Coffee Company last August to provide pro-Second Amendment and veteran communities a brand of their own.
“We wanted to offer something that is local here in Virginia Beach that was something that the folks here in the area could really be proud of and really support and contribute to the local economy in Hampton Roads,” Farnsworth said. “Looking at the community in general, I’ve never been to a firearms training course where coffee wasn’t like an absolute staple of the course, so we have some real coffee lovers out there in the industry.”
While he had previously purchased coffee from commercial and local cafes, Farnsworth said he felt distributors like Starbucks were not overly welcoming to customers who carried firearms.
Farnsworth cited a 2013 decision from former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz to no longer allow customers to bring guns into cafe locations.
In an interview with USA Today, Schultz said, “the presence of a weapon in our stores is unsettling and upsetting for many of our customers.”
With that in mind, Farnsworth said he felt there was a void in the coffee industry that he hoped to fill with Threaded Barrel Coffee.
Similar to veteran-owned coffee roasters Black Rifle Coffee Company in Salt Lake City, a major focus for Threaded Barrel Coffee is developing a brand that would appeal to the pro-Second Amendment and veteran culture in Hampton Roads.
“I believe in my heart of hearts that these people are yearning for businesses that will reach out and will embrace them and not make them feel ostracized in society like they’re some sort of fringe-element,” Farnsworth said. “They want an avenue. They want a place they can go where they feel like they are supporting a good cause and that their beliefs are supported, and not only supported but embraced.”
Along with supporting those communities, Farnsworth said another goal for his company is to promote local businesses.
Threaded Barrel Coffee beans are imported from Colombia or Brazil and then roasted in Hampton Roads according to Farnsworth.
Since starting the brand, Threaded Barrel has been featured at local farmers markets and on the shelves of local retailers like Ghost Army Tactical and Flutterby Soap Co., which has storefronts in Virginia Beach and in Norfolk at the Selden Market.
Threaded Barrel is also partnered with the Veterans of Foreign Wars, a non-profit that provides support to veterans and the military community. The coffee brand sells a VFW blend coffee and donates a dollar of each bag sold to veterans and their families.
Still relatively new in the coffee industry, Farnsworth said he would like to expand the operation and feature his brand in more business and organizations like the Department of Defense and the Navy Exchange.
According to Farnsworth, a brick-and-mortar could also be in the works — even supporting the idea of openly carried and lawfully owned weapons in the location.
“The establishment that I kind of envision is being the place that I would want to go to if I was the customer,” Farnsworth said. “What we are offering with the TBC, that vision matches better to what I would be looking for. We want to give that segment of the population, which I really think is representative of the majority, an outlet where they can come there and feel really good about their beliefs and who they are.”
While Threaded Barrel Coffee is featured in select businesses and events in Hampton Roads, the main retail source for the brand is on its website.
