Dean Cycon, founder and owner of Dean’s Beans Coffee Roasters, spoke to a group of around thirty students about his company in order to educate those in attendance on “how to use business for social good and to live one’s values through one’s work.” Mr. Cycon spoke courtesy of Amnesty International.
In pursuit of its mission to be both morally and economically sound, Dean’s Beans employs coffee growers at the end of the supply chain whose roasters often shortchange their profits without the growers’ knowledge.
Mr. Cycon’s company, on the other hand, is fair-trade: it gives its growers fair salaries, in addition to a profit-sharing program by which the indigenous farming communities receive six cents for every pound of coffee that Dean’s Beans buys and then sells to a consumer.
Reilly Simmons ’14 said, “Dean Cycon had some great ideas; he was captivating and easy to listen to, and he showed Deerfield students part of an industry that has been manipulated by larger chains.”
“Dean Cycon’s talk was inspirational,” said Nicky Rault ’13. “It really provoked me to think about how I could simultaneously accomplish what I want and still help the global community. Mr. Cycon’s speech made me ponder intensely about how I, as an individual can make a difference in my community.”