Vessel Craft Coffee
Vessel Craft Coffee, founded by Norfolk native Sarah Beth Cowherd, is a social entrepreneurship initiative. It began with a dream to combine the complex world of specialty craft coffee with the desire to bring something of value to the community in which it exists.
Vessel Craft Coffee buys coffee beans from farms around the world that pay fair wages, provide humane working conditions, and practice sustainable farming methods. Working with these farmers helps to reduce poverty and prevent deforestation.
The coffee is then locally roasted, taking into careful consideration the country of origin and specific characteristics of the bean to achieve certain flavor profiles.
Vessel Craft Coffee believes that coffee is more than just a morning ritual—it is quality time with the one you love, it is connection, it is community. That is why every quarter, they give back a percentage of profits to trackable community projects that make a difference in Norfolk and Hampton Roads. So far, contributions have included the Southside Boys and Girls Club, Refugee Helpers 757, and the Urban Renewal Center.
Vessel Craft Coffee at Selden Market features a coffee bar with their locally famous cold brew and nitro on tap, espresso, drip coffee, and single origin pour-overs. You can also buy bagged coffees from around the world, including best sellers like bourbon barrel aged coffee and CBD infused coffee, and coffee brewing equipment (perfect for the novice brewer). You can also find a Vessel Craft Coffee location at City Hall in Downtown Norfolk.
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In 2014, Hamilton Perkins founded Hamilton Perkins Collection, an independent brand, designing and producing unique and award winning bags and accessories from recycled materials.
Hamilton Perkins Collection exists to create timeless limited edition bags made from recycled plastic water bottles, pineapple leaf fiber, and billboard vinyl. The result is that no two bags are ever the same.
Our first design (pictured right), the Earth Bag Premium, was created so that our customers would not only carry a bag that was stylish but carry a bag they could be proud of. We surveyed more than 1,000 consumers to obtain their thoughts and feedback for each component of the Earth Bag Premium, which soon became one of our most popular designs.
Perkins was the winner of the Virginia Velocity Tour hosted by the Governor of Virginia, and the recipient of a HUD Community Development Block Grant. The non-profit B Lab honored Hamilton Perkins Collection as a "Best for the World Overall" B Corporation in 2017.
Hamilton Perkins Collection has been featured in Forbes, Fast Company, Money Magazine, and The Washington Post.
The brand is currently offered in nearly 100 leading department stores and specialty stores in the United States, Canada, and Europe.
