Superior Coffee Roasting Company

A love of coffee was the initial spark of inspiration for Ron Kurnik to start Superior Coffee Roasting Company, a Sault Ste. Marie business that has been energizing the Upper Peninsula since 2012. With its namesake Lake Superior nearby, Kurnik has worked to grow the business from the grounds up, providing superior quality and service for over a decade.

Superior Coffee’s growth has been supported along the way by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and its partners. Kurnik participated in the MEDC’s Second Stage Growth Solutions program in partnership with the Edward Lowe Foundation and the Rural Entrepreneurship Pilot Program. During the pandemic, the business was awarded Small Business Relief and Survival Grants, and in 2021, Kurnik won a customized support package for strategic business planning during an MEDC-sponsored pitch competition for food businesses in the U.P. in collaboration with the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Small Business Development Center, Michigan State University Product Center and U.P. Food Exchange.

Most recently, Superior Coffee was supported by a direct grant from the Headwaters North Small Business Support Hub program, awarded in November 2025. The MEDC-supported Small Business Support Hub and SmartZone serves new and early-stage businesses in the Eastern Upper Peninsula region. Through the grant, Superior Coffee has invested in creating a safer work environment and preventing losses in its roasting production.  

Wake Up and Smell the Coffee

After growing up in Ontario, Canada, Kurnik attended university in Texas and then moved to Arkansas, where he owned a canoe and kayak outfitting business. Several years later, he realized he was ready to return to a four seasons way of life; as a dual citizen, he says the Sault Ste. Marie area had “a natural attraction” for him as a place to settle down and start a new venture.

“I didn't know right away when I moved to the U.P. what sort of business I wanted to do,” said Kurnik. “I was previously in outdoor recreation with my business, but the seasonality for that was different down in Arkansas. I wanted to pivot to something that I enjoyed. It wasn't too long before I realized that I love coffee, and there's a void here in the Soo. There just wasn’t anyone in the Eastern U.P. roasting coffee.”

Kurnik did a case study on the local market and received training to run a coffee roasting business before officially launching his business in 2012. “I thought if I could make something a little better, while still being affordable, it’ll fly. I was spot on with the notion.” He developed a brand and marketing strategy with an initial focus on retail, roasting and packaging ground and whole bean options. “From there, the ball was rolling with the retail, and the wholesale distribution was starting to come together. Then in 2016, we opened a café downtown.”

Something’s Brewing

Located in the heart of Sault Ste. Marie on West Portage, Superior Coffee’s café is what Kurnik calls “the gem of the business.” Its prime spot downtown makes the café a favorite for locals and tourists alike, providing a full menu of favorites from pasties to signature lattes – not to mention, a view of the freighter ships passing through between Lake Superior and Lake Huron. “People who come into The Soo know our brand well, largely because of the café.”

In the past year, business has grown. Superior Coffee opened a second café at Lake Superior State University, helping to caffeinate the students right on campus. Beyond the success of the cafés, Kurnik says a chief focus of the roasting shop business has been its website, which went through a refresh in February 2026.

“We're really pushing towards getting those business-to-customer type of relationships built up online, because a lot of people are buying a lot of food staples and groceries online through subscriptions. We’re trying to tap into that market.”

Superior Coffee products have been shipped everywhere from Alaska to the Florida Keys; Kurnik says Sault Ste. Marie’s position as a Coast Guard town means servicepeople who are stationed there get to know the brand and continue to order coffee after they have been transferred to other sectors around the country.

A Jolt of Support

Throughout Superior Coffee’s business journey, Kurnik says he’s been able to rely on networking and small business support through the MEDC, including Region 1 managing director Vicki Schwab, and local partners in the U.P., including Headwaters North.

“Early on, Vicki was my first contact with the MEDC, and she was the most instrumental person when it came to state-supported opportunities,” Kurnik said. “It’s a very dynamic networking operation that I’ve been looped into, and one introduction leads to another. I’ve gotten to know a lot of people. With the recent Headwaters North Small Business Support Hub grant opportunity, it was something that small businesses in the community like ours could easily tap into to be a benefit.”

When Kurnik considered what his business could do with the grant funds, his thoughts went to the health and safety of his staff and peace of mind. In the coffee roasting business, that means power reliability.

“We work in a very volatile point in the roasting process where, if the power is ever lost, it is a fire hazard,” Kurnik said. “You get to where you're almost ready to drop the coffee to cool it, and it is not far from combustion, especially if you're doing a dark roast. We have had very close calls to where the power has gone out, and we've had to open the hatches and dump out the beans.”

Kurnik applied for grant funding to purchase a battery backup system to ensure power reliability throughout the roasting process, even if the power goes out. The application for the $4,500 grant was approved for Superior Coffee, along with 45 other Eastern U.P. small businesses. The round of grant awards represented more than $215,000 in direct support. “Businesses in town were able to take advantage of that, so I think it was a really nice boost for a lot of them.”

“Ron's story is exactly what MEDC investment looks like on the ground in rural Michigan,” said Nikki Storey, CEO of Headwaters North. “Through our SMART programs, statewide storytelling and a direct grant for a green battery backup system, Superior Coffee has advanced real goals around workplace safety, loss prevention and clean energy. When state support reaches founders like Ron, the whole community benefits.”

Higher Ground

Looking ahead, Kurnik says he’s looking forward to growing his customer base across the country, and serving cups of joe and from-scratch treats to U.P. residents and visitors. From a bean of an idea for a new business venture to a roastery, two cafés and nearly two dozen employees on the payroll, Superior Coffee is enjoying its steady growth in The Soo.

Learn how the MEDC is supporting small businesses like Superior Coffee Roasting Company.