Client: General Warfield’s Coffee — specialty coffee brand founded by John and Onome Warfield (Maryland)
Services: PR & Media Outreach
The Challenge
General Warfield’s Coffee launched in 2020, built around the origin story of founders John and Onome Warfield — a couple separated by distance who bonded over virtual “coffee dates” before building a specialty-grade, low-acid Arabica coffee brand together. In a crowded specialty coffee market, a new small-batch roaster with a genuinely good story still needs a consistent presence in front of the press, food writers, and gift-guide editors who shape where shoppers discover a brand. GWC needed ongoing PR to turn that story, and its “One Purchase, One Tree” sustainability program, into real media coverage.
The Approach
I’ve run an ongoing monthly PR program built around consistent outreach and a documented brand voice:
- PR & Media Outreach: Continuous reactive media pitching, guest-post drafting and placement, press release writing and distribution, and podcast/interview booking.
- Gift-Guide & Sample Coordination: Managing seasonal gift-guide submissions and product sample outreach to keep GWC in front of holiday and everyday coverage.
- Brand Voice Guidelines: A documented pitch-angle strategy built around the founders’ love story, the brand’s sourcing and sustainability program, and its growing accountability framework.
The Results
Over an ongoing engagement running from March 2025 through today, consistent pitching has produced a real spread of earned coverage:
Key Highlights:
- A feature in NY Weekly — “A Love Story in Every Sip” — telling the founders’ origin story to a national audience.
- A product mention in Forbes’ home espresso-machine roundup, plus a full feature in Your Tasty Guide on brewing coffee-house quality coffee at home.
- Recurring quote placements in The Manual, plus a sustainability-focused feature drafted with trade publication Fresh Cup.
- Two holiday gift-guide placements with My Four and More, plus a Father’s Day gift-guide feature with Life with Kathy.
- Additional coverage including a Southern Maryland News interview, a guest post with Young Upstarts, a paid guest post with MK Library, and a placement referenced in USA Today.
- Press release support for GenFour, GWC’s four-pillar accountability framework launched in July 2026, distributed via EIN Presswire.
The Impact
General Warfield’s Coffee has built a real, recurring media presence — from national lifestyle press to trade publications to holiday gift guides — anchored in a founder story that keeps earning coverage on its own merits. Steady monthly pitching has turned a small-batch coffee brand into a company that outlets return to for quotes and features, giving GWC a growing base of earned credibility to build on as it launches new product lines and sustainability milestones.