Hey, I’m Joel—the big-nosed guy in the photo above who roasts for you all at Jolly Bean alongside my other half, Lolly, and our ace little team, Ellie and Preet. After 15 years of roasting, it all started as a way to escape endless corporate email ping pong after university, daydreaming of opening a coffee shop while roasting at home on a 200g machine. That dream became reality back in 2018 when I spotted an empty retail unit a few doors from home, sent a couple of emails, and got the keys to our shop and cafe, Giddy Arts. Around that time, I upgraded to a 1kg manual roaster, sorted proper bags and labels, and officially launched Jolly Bean—sourcing high-scoring, ethical specialty lots, storing pallets at my parents' place in Manchester, and making weekly M62 runs from Yorkshire to stock up on beans.