Meet the Coffee Dept
The Coffee Dept’s three partners each have over 30 years of experience in building food and beverage companies, products, and sales.
Laura Sommers, President and CEO
From her earliest days in specialty coffee, Laura has been an evangelist for a better coffee experience, both in the cafe and in the home. Understanding that the overall cafe experience is as important as the coffee itself, she supported excellence in cafe operations by founding Espresso Supply in 1993 and Rattleware in 2006. She began managing the Bonavita brand in 2013, kicking off a decade of improvement in home coffee brewing across the channel. Throughout her career, Laura’s entrepreneurial spirit and desire to serve have guided her, creating a path for other brands to follow.
Kelly Traw, VP of Marketing
With three decades of marketing experience, Kelly has made a career of distilling specialty coffee stories to their essence, extracting key elements, and bringing products to life. From the onset of the specialty coffee industry, Kelly has been instrumental in evolving the cafe environment. As an early employee of Espresso Specialists, (the exclusive importer of LaMarzocco and Franke equipment at the time), Kelly helped lay the foundation for the specialty coffee cafe, going on to launch Modbar and later guide Slayer’s new market development. He built sales and distribution networks in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Kelly has supported coffee program enhancements at many leading retailers, including Caribou Coffee; Hyatt Hotels; McDonald’s; Panera Bread; Starbucks; and Whole Foods Markets.
Mike Newgent, VP of Sales
Mike represents the best in a sales professional, curious, optimistic, resilient, and a friend to all. He sees in the sales process an opportunity for connection and service. Mike understands that success only comes through building a solid relationship, which begins with listening. Starting with the global cheese supplier, Leprino Foods, Mike learned the commercial food service industry from the bottom up and the inside out. He put that knowledge to work as the first outside regional sales manager for Espresso Specialists (exclusive importer of La Marzocco and Franke equipment at the time). He initiated and maintained Franke’s long-standing relationship with their first national account, Panera Bread. He continued to work in the commercial food service industry including representing Taylor ice cream, gelato, and beverage equipment regionally. Mike’s unique combination of commercial food service and commercial coffee and espresso makes him poised to facilitate the coming wave of the specialty coffee industry, integrating coffee into existing national chains and QSRs.Â