An app developer and a coffee roaster set out to make their marks
Wellzesta
John Robinson would be the first to say it’s all about how you sell.
After years of academic research, his first venture flopped not because it was a bad idea, he said, but because it improved healthcare services at the cost of hospital revenues. So he shifted gears, this time leveraging the healthcare industry’s shift towards preventive care to help both patients and the bottom line.
Robinson and his wife, Kyle, are building a platform called Wellzesta, a program that boosts engagement and overall wellness with seniors in planned living communities and takes advantage of financial opportunities possible with wellness-focused insurance companies created by the Affordable Care Act.
“Life plan communities are reinventing themselves into comprehensive wellness providers,” said Robinson, who noted that baby boomers are more demanding in terms of retirement and senior living amenities. “Wellness is the new frontier in preventive medicine … This is the wild West.”
The platform integrates mental engagement and learning modules, a social media element and electronic medical records into one system, which also helps communities monitor changes in the physical and mental health of residents.
“We are emphasizing all of the elements of wellness that are typically overlooked,” said Robinson, who plans to release a version in early August. “If you’re lacking any one of those [elements], your wellness is impaired.”
Greenville Coffee Roasters
It started as a hobby for Greenville entrepreneur Josh Tucker, an ongoing trial-and-error process that transformed pounds of raw coffee into dark brown beans using an old-school popcorn maker. As he got better, he and Greenville-based Designli.co partner Keith Shields realized it could be more.
“It’s one thing if my mom thinks it’s good,” said Tucker. “But if everyone does, maybe it could work.”
This month, Tucker and Shields launched Greenville Coffee Roasters, a subscription company that sells locally roasted single-bean coffee starting at $16 per month for 12-ounce packages.
The pair are banking on the growing “buy local” movement in Greenville, along with the trend toward handcrafted and semi-artisan items. That, and the fact that people want to try new things and know how much coffee they typically consume, according to Shields. “That’s another thing that just screams ‘subscription service,’” he said.
The business model provides cash flow for production, which keeps costs down and requires minimal up-front backing that can stymie other startups, said Tucker. The small batches and local focus also ensure the delivery of fresh-roasted coffee, which is best ground and consumed between three days and two weeks after they roast, bag and ship it, he said.
“I used to think that was a lot of BS … but it really makes a difference,” said Tucker. “Micro-roasting is what craft beer brewing is right now.”
Tucker and Shields hope to use the first phase to determine frequency, quantities and what coffee varieties they should offer. Future expansion could include sales to businesses and restaurants.
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More from this week’s cover story…
