Origin Revelations

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Richard Futrell
A Chicago native, I spent my college learning about coffee by frequenting coffeehouses all over the city and upper Midwest. Inspired by the unique café atmospheres and the exotic origin stories of the coffees, I moved to North Carolina, opened a coffeehouse of my own, and began my now decades-long career in coffee.

My 10 years as a shop owner (The Third Place Coffeehouse in Raleigh, still open today), 11 years as a manager for Durham-based roaster Counter Culture Coffee, and 3 years at Volcafe's Genuine Origin, has prepared me for my current role as North American Sales Manager at Caravela Coffee.

Salomé Puentes
I work as Relationship Builder Coordinator for Caravela Coffee. After persuading my way into a private weekly cupping in Armenia, Colombia, I fell in love with coffee. By the age of 19, that passion took me to intern with Caravela in Bogotá . Since then, I took on various roles and responsibilities within the company, gaining a broad and nuanced understanding of the coffee industry. I am a believer in coffee’s ability to transform the lives of producers through small changes, improving coffee quality and sustainability at origin by looking at the opportunities instead of the lack of them.