Rockford-based Fire Dept. Coffee goes nationwide on Walmart shelves this week
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — A former Rockford firefighter’s nearly 8-year-old coffee company goes nationwide this week with its arrival in Walmart stores across the country.
Fire Dept. Coffee has been rolling out in Walmarts across the U.S. all month with its premium and creative roasts expected to be available at more than 2,300 locations by Friday.
“It’s a pivotal moment in our company and our time to prove ourselves,” Luke Schneider, founder and CEO of the company, told the Rock River Current. “The work is just getting started. Getting on the shelf is the first part. Now we need to continue to grow the business on the shelf.”
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The locally roasted coffee has shipped across the country through online sales and wholesale to fire departments and businesses for several years. The move into Walmart gives it a retail presence in hundreds of new markets.
The company earned the chance to sell at America’s biggest retailer after attending an open call event last fall. There were more than 13,000 applications, and Fire Dept. Coffee was one of roughly 1,000 companies invited to Walmart’s headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, to pitch its product.
Schneider and company vice president Jason Patton left the pitch meeting in late October with a Golden Ticket to be featured in Walmart. They were among 180 pitches to get the ticket.
“We could not be more thrilled about the opportunity for coffee lovers to find Fire Dept. Coffee in Walmart stores,” Schneider said in a news release. “It’s an opportunity to introduce our roasts to even more people, allowing us to help more firefighters in need. Not only that, it’s creating more jobs here in our hometown of Rockford.”
The company employs about 50 people in Rockford, where it’s headquartered at 811 W. Riverside Blvd. in the former Al Grace Appliance. Schneider expects to add more jobs as sales ramp up at Walmart.
The first roasts available in Walmart stores will be Original Medium Roast, Skull-Crushing Espresso, Shellback Espresso, and Black Cherry Bourbon Infused Coffee. There will also be single-serve coffee pods for Original Medium Roast, Skull-Crushing Espresso and Shellback Espresso.
Schneider is a Navy veteran who served as a shipboard firefighter and former Rockford firefighter who turned to coffee to stay alert during long shifts. He started studying the craft of coffee making years ago with his wife, Kate, and after years of tinkering founded the company in 2016. Initially, he had small ambitions to sell at farmers markets and pop-ups, but the original Fire Dept. Coffee blend took off, he said.
“I couldn’t have planned it if I wanted to,” Schneider said. “It wasn’t my goal to build a national coffee brand. We were just passionate about the craft of coffee and wanted to share that with our friends and family.”
The company also has a mission to help sick and injured firefighters through its nonprofit Fire Dept. Coffee Foundation. The foundation offers financial support to firefighters injured on the job or organizations that do that work. It also aims to uplift firefighters through its community hero awards or simply through some humorous social media posts.
“When a firefighter gets sick or injured, similar to the military they lose their team, their purpose and sometimes their sense of identity,” Schneider said. “So we want to build a community around them.”
Schneider left the Rockford Fire Department about two years ago to focus on the coffee business full time. He said the company has several team members who are or were firefighters.
“The growth in the company practically speaking is a testament to the team and our ability to work together to continue to move the company forward,” he said.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas
