Boyd’s was started in Portland by P.D. Boyd, who delivered coffee to customers from a red delivery wagon. Today the company sells to hotels, restaurants and grocery stores, and has a retail store online and at its Gresham roastery. Boyd’s original storefront was located at 423½ Morrison Street in Portland.
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A Portland establishment that has been selling coffee for over 100 years is closing operations in Oregon this year.
Boyd Coffee Company, once dubbed the oldest family-owned coffee company in the world, will close and lay off all of its employees by Oct. 1. The move comes about a year after the company was officially acquired by Texas-based company Farmer Brothers. Farmer Brothers is a national coffee roaster, wholesaler and distributor.
"There is a lot of pride in the company, and pride in their contributions to a rich and vibrant history," said Ann Nordquist, vice president of human resources at Boyd's. "There is no doubt this kind of change is difficult and emotional."
Boyd's operations will move to Texas, according to Nordquist, and the company's 230 team members will all be laid off. Of those employees, 135 work in Oregon, and Farmer Brothers has begun hiring some of those employees for sales, marketing and customer service jobs.
Boyd’s, founded in 1900, has been operating under a transitional services agreement and co-manufacturing agreement with Farmer Brothers ever since its acquisition last October.
Nordquist says Boyd's has been talking with team members since Farmer Brothers' intent to acquire the company was first announced in August last year. Mike Keown, Farmer Brothers' chief executive officer, said at the time that the acquisition would help expand Farmer Brothers' distribution footprint. The deal cost $58.6 million.
Boyd's employees were notified in person or by phone, according to Nordquist.
"We’ve been very open about what we learn as we learn information regarding Farmer Brothers' decisions on the timing of transitioning the business to their operations," she said. "Our goal is to support our team members to successfully transition to their next best opportunity — whatever that may be."
Between August 2016 and July 2017, Boyd's generated about $95 million in revenue.
Calls to Farmer Brothers were not returned.