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Nordstrom Offers a Cup of Community
By Jadell Forman (Class of 1990)
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"That's a little globe of beans, right there," says master roaster Bobby Ellis.
Combining beans from Ethiopia, Brazil, India, and El Salvador, Ellis creates an espresso blend, which serves as the basis for all Nordaggio's specialty drinks.
Founder Tor Nordstrom raves about his business partner. "Anybody can run a roaster, but not everybody can blend."
Ellis pours thirty pounds of his blend down the hopper and into the cast-iron drum of a $25,000 roasting machine. The custom-made contraption looks like something from Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.
Like a clothes dryer, the drum heats and spins, releasing a rich aroma. Inside, the beans crack and expand like popcorn. They caramelize and become sweet like sautéed peppers.
After fourteen minutes, Ellis opens the drum, allowing the roasted beans--now lighter and larger--to cascade into the cooling tray. For a final five minutes, a mechanical arm stirs the steaming beans.
Once cooled, the blend is bagged and shipped throughout Tulsa, and out of state to Florida and New Mexico. According to Nordstrom, ministries make up 65 percent of his wholesale customers.
He sees his business as one that enhances connections between people, socializing as they drink his coffee. "We are a community-enhancement engine," he pronounces with a definitive nod. "Nordaggio's is a peace and light atmosphere--a place to fellowship and celebrate life."
For Nordstrom, life began in Seattle, where coffee was social. During his college years, coffee became survival. "I drank it studying all night for finals at ORU, if you want to know the truth."
By the grace of God and the buzz of caffeine, he earned an undergraduate degree in organizational/interpersonal communications, with minors in business and music.
Mid-seminary he felt impressed to stop pursing his master's. Having this idea to start a coffee shop, but unable to obtain loans, he prayed for over two weeks at his desired strip mall location.
Recounting the story from a patio table, he says, "From 2 to 5 a.m. I laid on the sidewalk...right there...just me and the mockingbirds."
After two months of seeking, a mild depression, and a brief return to Seattle, he reapplied for loans. This time banks said yes, and the first shop opened in 1998.
Now, his mission is to "save people," he says, from the curse of poor coffee.
Nordstrom believes in ministering to people by extending a cup of high-quality, freshly roasted, professionally blended "elixir," christened with a milky design for visual appeal.
This successful recipe was difficult to obtain. Nordstrom reports working 90-hour weeks his first two years. Eventually mastering his blend of beverage savvy, the business developed a nice flow. "Just because God gives you His promises doesn't mean it's going to be easy."
In January, Southern Living magazine selected Nordaggio's as one of the best coffee spots in Tulsa. And business is perking up.
In 2005, Nordstrom opened a Nordaggio's at Riverwalk Crossing in nearby Jenks. This last May, he launched a drive-through version in Owasso. In September, he will open a fourth location at 9900 Riverside Parkway.
Nordstrom is a 1995 ORU graduate. For a brief history of the business name Nordaggio's, click here.
