Published: April 01, 2007 10:06 pm      

Grounded in Coffee

7-year-old hopes to make big bucks with special blend

He has to stand on his tiptoes to see the top of the machine used to create his product. And his mom transports him from place to place to showcase his goods.

But Donald Trump beware: 7-year-old Jesse Sisson is a budding entrepreneur who doesn’t get bogged down in minor details.

“I plan to make $10,000,” Sisson said with sharp confidence.

The way he plans to do it: by selling a special blend of coffee he created.

“I mix it the same way every time,” Jesse said of his secret recipe that includes three blends of coffee beans.

He hopes his coffee — Jesse’s Old Time Freshly Ground Coffee — will be a hit. He debuted his coffee recently at Old Fashioned Day in Pachuta.

Jesse pocketed $175 at the event. A few days later, he opened his first checking account at Great Southern Bank in Quitman. Then the first-grader from Enterprise Elementary tithed his first earnings and pondered what to do with the profits.

“I’m keeping it in the bank until I decide what I want to buy,” Jesse said.

Jesse’s interest in coffee making brewed when his step-mother, Beth, an antiques dealer, brought home an old coffee grinder.

“He wanted to know how it worked, so we got some coffee beans and I showed him,” she said.

And from that introduction, Jesse created his own special blend of coffee.

“He started grinding and grinding those three flavors together and we haven’t been able to stop him,” she said. “And it really tastes good; I’ve stopped buying coffee at the store.”

Others agree.

“Hmmm ... That smells good — and I don’t drink coffee,” said Meridian Star News Editor Helen Reynolds after smelling a bag of the fresh coffee.

Jesse aspires to be a successful businessman. He not only grinds the coffee, but he’s also involved in marketing his product.

“We decided to sell the coffee in brown bags,” his step-mother said. “We created several label designs on the computer and had him to look at them and choose the one he liked.”

Jesse’s coffee is sold in two sizes: small, which makes three pots of coffee, for $2; and large, which makes five pots of coffee, for $3.

The young entrepreneur was invited to set up a booth at the Pachuta event, which benefited the town’s Relay for Life fund-raiser. Donning a white apron with the words “Jesse’s Coffee” boldly across the front, the young entrepreneur sold a cup of coffee for 50 cents and cookies for 50 cents (coffee was free with a cookie purchase).

As he continues to build his business — private parties are under consideration — Jesse also makes time for other interests.

He eagerly talks about the work he’s done while helping his father, Jackie, build the family’s new home.

“I move wood and carry a lot of other stuff,” said Jesse, who is also the son of Teresa Sisson.

An avid outdoorsman, he enjoys hunting and fishing and spending time with his brothers, Jack, 2, Jake, 17, and Jonathan, 19.

Want to buy some coffee?

Seven-year-old Jesse Sisson will sell his special blend of coffee at scheduled events on the following dates:

i Afterschool Demonstration and Sale — May 1, Great Southern Bank, Quitman.

i Enterprise Day — May 5. Coffee, lemonade and peanut butter cookies will be sold.