Airship Coffee

Our Origin Story, from our owner, Mark Bray:
"People often ask me how Airship got its name and how I entered the coffee business. It’s interesting that the latter question doesn’t come first, but I guess my journey has always taken unexpected turns. Each time someone asks, I smile and say, “I’d love to tell you that story, and if you have time for another cup of coffee, I will.”

Back in 2000, Amber and I were living in Fayetteville, Arkansas. I was juggling college and jobs as a stonemason and pizza maker while Amber finished her nursing degree. One day, as we drove past the college basketball arena during the Walmart shareholders meeting, from the backseat of our mini-van, our two-year-old daughter Rainy pointed out a blimp overhead and exclaimed, “Da Blimp!” This moment was so precious that Amber later bought a Christmas ornament shaped like a blimp.

Fast forward to 2006, after finishing my graduate degree in horticulture, I was working at the University as an agronomist, but I felt restless and craved adventure. A friend introduced me to a missionary in Honduras working to teach sustainable agriculture to local mountain communities. I jumped at the opportunity, and on my first visit, and a long and arduous hike into the mountains I reached an isolated village where I met the local leader, Santos and his wife, Maria Juana. She prepared the best cup of coffee I’ve ever had, made with freshly roasted beans and sugarcane juice. Over coffee and conversation, I learned that their biggest struggle wasn’t growing coffee but finding fair market access, which sparked the idea for my coffee business.

Immediately I began building a supply chain connecting farmers in Honduras to coffee roasters in the US. A year later, I imported my first container of green coffee. Now that we had a business, we needed a name.  In late 2008, while trimming the Christmas tree, Amber held up the blimp ornament (Da Blimp) and suggested naming the business “Airship.” It felt perfect—recognizable, iconic and reflective of our pioneering efforts in Central America.

Airship represents an elevated perspective, allowing us to see where we’ve been, where we are, and where we want to go. It embodies my journey of connecting directly with farmers and pursuing a shared vision for a better future. We believe that when we work together the sky's the limit!