BATON ROUGE, La. — Community Coffee, the nation’s largest family-owned retail coffee brand according to company data, has announced the appointment of Kristi Crump to the dual role of Senior Vice President of Brand, Retail and E-commerce and also the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). In this expanded capacity, Crump will lead the brand’s commercial strategy, bringing together consumer insights, digital growth and product innovation to support the company’s growth across retail and at-home consumption channels.
Since joining Community Coffee in March 2025 as Senior Director of Ecommerce, Crump helped grow the brand’s digital business and expand its reach with online shoppers. In her new role, she will oversee Brand and Innovation, Digital Marketing, Corporate Communications and Partnerships, with a focus on continuing to grow Community Coffee across retail, e-commerce and national channels.
“Since joining us in 2025, Kristi has established herself as a transformative leader,” says Tom Corley, President and CEO. “She understands both the heritage of our brand and the opportunities ahead. As part of a leadership team that includes several accomplished female leaders, Kristi will help drive our strategy as we continue expanding Community Coffee into new markets and channels.”
Crump brings over two decades of experience building brands and driving market share for major global companies. Prior to joining Community Coffee, she held senior leadership roles at TikTok, where she worked on commercial expansion initiatives, and spent more than a decade at Amazon leading ecommerce innovation and category management. Her career also includes tenures at Philips Consumer Lifestyle, working on brands including Norelco and Sonicare.
“I am honored to step into this role during such an exciting and pivotal time for Community Coffee,” says Crump. “It is a privilege to work alongside such a talented team and to help continue the legacy of a brand that means so much to so many people. My focus is honoring our rich history while finding new, data-driven ways to bring Community Coffee to more consumers across the country.”
Kristi holds an MBA from the University of Washington, a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Concordia College and a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification, a credential focused on business process improvement and operational efficiency.
Community Coffee Story
Founded in 1919 by Henry Norman “Cap” Saurage, Community Coffee began as an experiment in coffee blending inside Saurage’s grocery store in Baton Rouge. From those early days, the company has remained family-owned and operated, now in its fifth generation of ownership by the Saurage family. That continuity remains a defining part of the company’s identity.
Over more than a century, Community Coffee has grown from a local Baton Rouge operation into one of the largest family-owned retail coffee brands in the United States. Its products are sold in retail stores across much of the southeastern U.S., as well as through online channels and partnerships with offices, restaurants and other businesses. The company also maintains direct relationships with coffee growers internationally and maintains relationships with coffee growers internationally, including its role as a founding member of World Coffee Research, which supports agricultural research and sustainability in coffee production.
In 1995, Community Coffee expanded into the coffeehouse sector with the launch of CC’s Coffee House. The café brand operates as a related but distinct entity under the Saurage family, operating café-style retail locations.
