Despite many years of building a successful career in the IT industry, it was Wanda Guyton’s passion for coffee that kept her motivated and excited as an entrepreneur.
She grew up in the Chicago area, then moved to Atlanta, Ga., when she was 21. She graduated from the DeVry Institute of Technology in 2002 with a degree in telecommunications management. When the federal government mandated the use of medical records for doctors and hospitals, training clinicians on how to use the electronic medical record became an essential requirement. The demand for people with Wanda’s background and skills was extraordinarily high, and she soon found herself working all over the country helping organizations implement these new and complicated systems.
Her travels brought her to Lewes in 2014 to implement learning platforms for healthcare personnel. She was eventually hired by Beebe Healthcare, where she worked full time until 2023. When COVID hit in 2020, change became inevitable in every aspect of life. Wanda began to ponder, “What does my next chapter look like?” She had always harbored a deep interest in coffee, and during her time away from Beebe, she began to research the production, roasting and processing of coffee beans.
In 2021, while she continued to work remotely for Beebe, Wanda was motivated to start her own coffee business. Her business, Coffee Rendezbrew, started off completely online. She sold coffee and related products at www.coffeerendezbrew.com and on Amazon. As Wanda’s knowledge of the industry grew, so did her curiosity, and she began to import beans from a variety of countries and roasted them locally according to her own specifications. Eventually, Wanda decided to leave the security of healthcare and became a full-time business owner pursuing her true passion. As a small business owner and wearing many hats, she saw her days go from eight hours in healthcare to 12-plus hours a day selling coffee. As Wanda said, “If you don’t want to work long hours, don’t plan to own your own business.”
Still running her business online, Wanda began to take her coffee to local events, farmers markets and anywhere she thought she could get additional exposure. Recognizing the opportunity to create a local brand, Wanda partnered with local grocery stores and small businesses, and soon opened her own retail store in Tanger Outlets Surfside in November 2023. With her different roasts named after area towns, Wanda has developed a regional identity for her coffee. Because of her location in the Tanger Outlets, she gets great exposure to not only local shoppers, but also people who come from out of the area. The out-of-town shoppers enjoy Wanda’s different coffees so much that many of them convert to online customers.
Wanda has four employees, and notes that employing people is a continual learning experience. Having worked in various industries for different employers, she has been able to apply her experiences as an employee to benefit her own staff. Although she didn’t always enjoy a healthy work-life balance, she is committed to ensuring her employees can achieve that in their jobs.
Looking back at her many experiences, Wanda would give the following advice to her eighteen-year-old self. Live your dreams, and don’t worry about making mistakes. Mistakes are those things we learn from to help us be successful going forward. And lastly, live the life you want to live. We only get one chance at life, so do what truly makes you happy.
Looking to the future, Wanda aims to grow her brand into a household name, reaching not just local customers but also a nationwide audience through e-commerce. She plans to expand the availability of her coffee in various restaurants and stores in the area, and she hopes to open another retail location eventually.
Wanda believes it’s important to give back to the community that has supported her as a small business owner. She donates gift baskets to many different charities, and 20% of the sales of her Beaches Brew Coffee go to Read Aloud Delaware. Wanda also recently joined the board of Cape Henlopen Education Foundation, where she is just as passionate about helping students.
Wanda acknowledges the numerous obstacles she faced breaking into an industry where women, and especially Black women, are not often taken seriously. Through dedication and by leveraging her previous professional experience, she overcame many of those challenges. Customers are often surprised to learn that Wanda is the owner, but her extensive coffee knowledge and skillful customer interactions quickly establish her credibility. As Wanda says, “When you’re passionate about what you do, there are no limits to what you can accomplish.”
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This column provides an opportunity for readers to connect with the personal side of business leaders in area communities. Many of our local business owners and CEOs are thought leaders in their community, and they can provide valuable insights and ideas on issues of common interest to all of us. Successful businesses are essential for a healthy and growing society, especially as people continue to move to this area looking for employment opportunities. This column will highlight leaders who are not only successful, but also making a difference in our communities.
Jeffrey Fried has been an executive in the healthcare industry for over 40 years, including serving as the president/CEO of Beebe Medical Center for 24 years. After leaving Beebe Healthcare, Jeff started his own consulting and executive coaching company, and has coached executives in a variety of industries. In addition, Jeff has partnered with a company called Vistage, the oldest executive coaching company in the country, where he serves as a local chair on the Delmarva Peninsula and leads/supports a group of medium-sized business owners and CEOs. Jeff and his wife Sherry reside outside Lewes and between the two of them have three children and five grandchildren. Last but not least, they are the parents of two rescue dogs.
