Vic Schiro owns Vito’s Espresso in Spring Arbor. He does not just sell his morning brew; he drinks it, too. But recently, Schiro has seen those prices go up.
- Vito's Espresso in Spring Arbor raised coffee prices by 10%.
- Tariffs, fuel, staffing, and extreme weather are driving the hikes.
- The owner remains confident the coffee industry will adjust to the challenges.
"I like good coffee, and good coffee comes at a price," Schiro said.
I caught up with Schiro to learn what has contributed to recent spikes in prices. He told me that tariffs are only the tip of the iceberg. Other contributing factors include fuel and weather.
"Tornadoes and monsoons, and whatever else that affects the growing region, and production goes down, price goes up," Schiro said.
Schiro told me that prices usually go up about 5% per year. However, due to increased costs, consumers are seeing an even more bitter blend.
"We couldn’t keep it to only 5%. We had to raise it 10% because of increased costs across the board," Schiro said.
Those increased costs include food, processing, and keeping staff. They are struggles that coffee shops are seeing everywhere.
I asked Schiro if he was worried.
"We’re gonna adjust. And when I say ‘we’, I mean the world," Schiro said. "I’ve pivoted before, I can pivot again."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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