Brewing Change: How BIGGBY Coffee Is Using Regenerative Agriculture to Redefine Capitalism

Coffee connects us all — but what if it could heal the planet too?

In this episode of It Shouldn’t Be This Hard, we sit down with Bob and Michelle Fish, the co-founders of BIGGBY Coffee and One Bigg Island in Space (OBIIS), to explore how a beloved American coffee brand is leading a regenerative revolution—one farm, one partnership, and one community at a time.

From growing BIGGBY Coffee into 450+ stores across the U.S. to transforming their entire global supply chain through farm-direct, regenerative agriculture, Bob and Michelle share how business can thrive within planetary limits—not despite them.

They unpack the realities of climate change in coffee-growing regions, the urgent need for moral boundaries in capitalism, and why regeneration is a business imperative.

Key Takeaways:

• How BIGGBY Coffee is working to source 100% of its beans through farm-direct regenerative agriculture by 2028.
• The philosophy behind “Capitalism with boundaries” and why it’s not philanthropy but survival.
• The story of One Bigg Island in Space and how it connects coffee drinkers directly to the farmers growing their beans.
• Why empathy, storytelling, and personal purpose are key to building sustainable companies.
• The role of climate change, community impact, and partnership in the future of coffee.

Timestamps:

00:00 – Introduction to BIGGBY Coffee and One Bigg Island in Space

06:00 – The personal and professional partnership of Bob & Michelle Fish

10:00 – Building a Life You Love: BIGGBY’s people-first philosophy

13:51 – The reality of scaling a sustainable business

19:04 – The inspiration behind OBIIS and direct-to-farmer sourcing

24:23 – Simplicity in sustainability and the power of storytelling

26:48 – Capitalism with a conscience: profit within planetary limits

28:23 – Empathetic vs. sociopathic capitalism

35:00 – The flywheel of impact and building a regenerative future

Additional Resources:

🌍 Get Grounded: https://shorturl.at/XFS5k

🤖 Meet Gaia, our sustainability AI: https://shorturl.at/6viH5

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It Shouldn’t Be This Hard is the podcast for leaders, founders, and change-makers reimagining what good business looks like. Real conversations, radical ideas, and the occasional cup of coffee — grounded in the belief that purpose and profit can (and must) coexist.