Portland’s Deadstock Coffee has been serving “snob-free” coffee for a decade, developing its identity and place in the community through the elements of space, design, beverage offering and flavour. In the latest Re:co lecture, founder Ian Williams explains how a sharp focus on accessibility throughout the company’s growth and history provides a case study in what it means to move beyond a singular sense of specialty. T

Presenter: Ian Williams

Ian Williams is a size 12.5-wearing sneaker fool who love cookies (soft ones), and if he was a little bit taller he'd be in a league somewhere. Ian spent about a decade at Nike prior to now. He started there as a Janitor and stutter-stepped his way through the corporate traffic to land a position as Footwear Developer. In 2014, Ian left the corporate world to start Deadstock Coffee a sneaker-themed coffee shop in Old Town, PDX.