S&D'S TRACY GING SPILLS THE BEANS: FOUR CUPS A DAY PERKS UP A FAST-RISING EXECUTIVE OF NORTH CAROLINA'S FAMOUS COFFEE VENDOR.

AuthorLeggett, Page
PositionNC TREND: Game Changer: Profile of a female leader

Tracy Ging loves coffee--both the beverage and the business.

Concord-based S&D Coffee & Tea recently promoted the 47-year-old Indiana native to executive vice president and chief business officer--her Twitter profile uses the title "chief officer of some stuff." Ging joined the 92-year-old company in 2012, four years before Toronto-based Cott Corp. acquired the business for $355 million. Her previous roles at S&D have included vice president of strategic development, vice president of sustainability and chief commercial officer. In addition to her work at S&D, she is second vice president of the Specialty Coffee Association of America, a Santa Ana, Calif.-based nonprofit. She worked as deputy executive director at the trade association before joining S&D. She also has served on boards of other coffee-industry groups.

Ging spoke with Business North Carolina about her job, her passion for sustainability and the coffee community she loves.

* YOUR RESUME SEEMS TO POINT TO A SINGLE-MINDED DEVOTION TO COFFEE.

I have been lucky in coffee. It's a great industry. It's a product I love and a community I love. Coffee people are passionate about the beverage. And on the consumer side, people love coffee. It's daily happiness.

Sustainability is a big topic in our industry, and it's something I'm personally passionate about. Our industry has moved aggressively to voluntarily adopt standards around sustainability. We were an early and enthusiastic adopter in the drive to get to know our farmers. We have a geographically diverse supply chain, so it can be tough to get to know people in the very rural areas where coffee is grown. But we're making an effort. I don't know of another industry that goes to the lengths our industry does. The sustainable coffee challenge--the commitment to make coffee the world's first fully sustainable agricultural product--is something we aspire to.

* HOW HAS YOUR ROLE CHANCED SINCE THE PROMOTION?

1 have increased responsibility for marketing and product development, driving expansion of our offerings, and product launches. I'm supporting our CEO [Ron Hinson] as we expand into new channels such as extracts and ingredients, and expand geographically. We have a customer in Asia now, so we've expanded our footprint there.

We're the largest custom coffee roaster and tea blender in the U.S. for other people's brands. You'll find our products--but not our name--in convenience stores, fast-food restaurants, doughnut shops, diners...

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