"I Got Lucky" in Dialogue with Jay Kim

words by Luke Leffel and Jay Kim

photos by Jay Kim and friends

It might’ve taken a couple tries to sort through the 13 hour time difference, schedule changes for an emergency grinder calibration, taking a call while weighing out coffee beans, and navigating an absurd midwestern storm that was blowing in, but we did it. 

I looked around and “appreciated” the severe temperature drop that was coming in (from 78 to 38 in about 4 hours!), ran into my apartment before the rain smeared too much of the ink off of my notes, and continued talking with Jay for what turned out to be an amazing discussion on coffee, life and everything in between.

Jay Kim is the hospitality focused, quality oriented, occasionally controversial, self-admittedly lucky founder of the UFO dripper and all around advocate of specialty coffee. Anyone could’ve guessed that this was gonna be a good conversation, with our collective years and degrees of coffee industry knowledge, and I loved those parts of the conversation. What I loved more, though, was the commitment that Jay and I share to making sure that hospitality is at the forefront of what we do in this industry.

Like many of us, Jay dreamed of starting a cafe. His interest in third place and the act of caring for others led him to create a welcoming space for people who had never heard of specialty coffee. Unlike many of us, Jay’s journey took him from the East Coast to Seoul, along the way working with various coffee professionals throughout the States, prototyping a pour over coffee dripper, and hosting weekly tastings at his home in order to provide the welcoming space that he had been dreaming up. As with many entrepreneurial stories, I’m still a bit hazy on the details of the timeline.

From the outside looking in, it’s easy to see that Jay is a good guy and cares about the communities he’s involved with. It’s what attracts a lot of us to his work. In a familiar dose of his on-brand humility, though, he was also sure to say that his work isn’t driven by some idea of simply and selflessly creating cafes for other people. His easy answer to why he got into coffee? “To make a living.” and to be real, I get really excited when I hear Jay and people like him give me this answer when they’re asked why they do what they do. 

From his posts about hospitality, to his incessant pursuit of advocating for connection through high quality coffee, to his argument that philanthropy belongs on the production side of coffee (rather than the consumer side), we get to witness someone truly existing in the space they feel most alive and are really making a go for it through this beautiful medium of specialty coffee.

It’s truly a beautiful thing when we get to witness the synergy of the person who finds the place where their passion meet their livelihood.

Jay’s take on how he got to where he is was equally as humble as his take on why he got into coffee: “I got lucky.” Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think Jay was lying when he said this, but I usually find that when people get lucky, it’s because they’ve been doing the work needed to put themselves in the position for that luck to find them…

Luke Leffel: When we spoke on the phone, you listed off a few reasons you think you got lucky in your exploration into specialty coffee. You became friends with folks in companies like Counter Culture and Black & White and had someone ask to use your prototyped brewer for the World Brewer’s Cup, among other things. While this does sound lucky, you definitely had to put in the work to get into those positions, right?

Jay Kim: Absolutely. I’m a very hard worker. I work harder when no one is watching. Luck found me because I gave luck no other choice than to find me. I’ve always had a motto of providing as much value as I can for free without expecting anything in return for as long as I can, and that concept is beginning to prove itself. But at the same time, it was again, pure luck. It was a complete coincidence that I just so happened to be living in an area with such incredible companies nearby. It was a complete coincidence that [Black & White owner] Kyle Rampage and I met for the first time on a disc golf course. It was luck that I was born into a set of parents that instilled the values I live by.

L: On the idea of creating our luck, what do you do to keep putting yourself in the “right” places, to ensure that you’re doing the work you want to do?

J: I look at what the industry leaders are doing. I study the greats. I try to think about what they would do. I am obsessed with providing value to others. If it wasn’t for that obsession of mine, I wouldn’t have been able to create this incredible network of resources that often brings me to these “right” places. If you continue to ask yourself what value you can provide others before what value you can take from others, I promise you that you will find yourself in these “right” places.

L: Your work on hospitality has been really inspiring for the coffee community, and it’s what first drew me to your brand. Can you explain the meaning of hospitality to you, and the importance of what it means as you invite people into the work you’re doing?

J: Hospitality is life. Hospitality exists everywhere. Between friends, amongst families, between lovers, heck, even between a pet and an owner relationship. Hospitality can breathe life into dull and mundane everyday tasks and interactions so that we can better respect each others’ humanities. Without hospitality that I was extended from kind and generous folks early on in my specialty coffee career, I would have struggled to get started on anything. It was the hospitality of my friend Jesse Gordon at Counter Culture that inspired me to become more kind and patient with newcomers. It was the hospitality of my friend George Kilgore’s cafe called Fount Coffee in Morrisville, NC that inspired me to build a community around specialty coffee. The best baristas don’t just pull shots. They pull people in. And that’s through hospitality.

L: Do you have any fun projects in the future you’d like to let us know about?
J: Man I’ve always got fun projects in mind. The only limiting factor is the same as anyone else’s: capital. I don’t mind though, because I’m in no rush. I’m still young, and time is on my side. I’ll be releasing a UFO V3 01 size alongside UFO Type F filters in 01 size soon. I do also have a YouTube channel which I’d like to utilize more to be able to better communicate with my audience via long form videos where I can explain my thoughts deeper. I’m also looking to expand my presence in the coffee industry from the dripper guy to perhaps the coffee guy, the car guy, the bicycle guy, etc. I have many passions and I want to continue to share my passions with people through hospitality. That’s how meaningful relationships are built. I do have a few more products that I’m going to launch this year, but I must keep them a secret…for now.

L: I really appreciate your time brother! It’s incredibly meaningful to get an opportunity to hear your story, and I recognize how valuable your time must be to you. What’s the one main takeaway you’d leave with our readers, whether they be coffee professionals, cafe frequenters, or anything in between?

J: You’re going to die. And when you die, no one will remember you in two generations. The people that talk shit about you will also be dead, and so will the people who praise you. Live a life that you want to live. Build a life you want to live. If you want to do something, go for it. Try. Fail. Try again. If you’re reading this, time is on your side. For now. May washed Geishas always be a part of your story. Big love,