When most people think about investing, they picture real estate, stocks, or private equity. But what if one of the most compelling opportunities lies in something millions of people enjoy every morning—a cup of coffee? In this episode of Build It to Billions, Brett Swarts sits down with Adam Jason, Co-CEO and Vice Chairman of Green Coffee Company, to explore how the business has built one of Colombia’s largest vertically integrated coffee operations. From acquiring farms and modernizing production to expanding into North American markets, Adam shares the strategy behind transforming a traditional agricultural business into a scalable global enterprise.
Drawing on his unique journey from corporate attorney to entrepreneur, Adam offers valuable insights into raising capital, navigating international business, and creating long-term value through operational excellence. Whether you’re an entrepreneur looking to scale beyond your current industry, an investor searching for alternative asset opportunities, or a business owner preparing for your next big exit, this conversation highlights the principles of building resilient businesses that generate both financial returns and lasting impact.
Episode Highlights Here:
Brett
Before we jump into this episode, I want to invite you to join our community to help you become a better steward, scale to billions, and ultimately give more or all of it away. All I want
you to do is to click the subscribe button right now. I love your support. It’s incredible to see your comments, and we’re just getting started. I can’t wait to go on this journey with you.
Thank you so much for subscribing; it means the world to me. Welcome to the Build to Billions podcast, where we guide successful entrepreneurs and investors on their journey from millions to billions. We believe the key to scaling and compounding your wealth in life starts every single day with the mindset and practice of stewardship over ownership and applying billionaire biblical principles. Our ultimate goals help you scale and compound your wealth in life, so you can give more all the way to help MVPs. My name is Brett Swartz. Each and every episode, we are joined by the world’s top entrepreneurs, millionaires, or billionaires, and they share their secrets, insights, and wisdom with us, so we can all level up and make a bigger impact. I’m excited about our next guest. He is the co-CEO of the Green Coffee Company, Colombia’s largest coffee grower and the U.S. pre-IPO vertically integrated farm-to-cup coffee business with U.S. rights to the iconic Juan Valdez coffee brand. He’s a former capital markets attorney at two of the largest U.S. law firms, and he has advised Fortune 500 companies and major investment banks on IPOs, corporate finance, and capital formation before moving to Medellin, Colombia. In 2018, became an entrepreneur and helped to build GCC into a coffee industry leader and so much more. We’re going to talk about agriculture and alternative assets investing. Please welcome the show with me, Adam Jason. Adam, how we doing?
Adam
Hi, Brett. Thanks for having me. Thank you.
Brett
Excellent. And for listeners getting to know you for the first time, would you give us a little more about your story and your current focus?
Adam
Sure. So normally I’d be talking to you from many Colombia. I flew into Chicago last night. We have our U.S. headquarters here, originally from Buffalo, New York. You covered my bio pretty well in the in the description. Former capital markets attorney, advising companies on IPOs, raising money on the stock market, raising money in private markets, corporate governance, what have you. Worked for some great companies over the years. Worked on the IPO for Yeti Coolers, which might resonate with some of your listeners. Really had a great experience. Decided in 2018 just reached a fork in the road that that many from my background and incorporate America generally come to where you have to decide between, in my case, partner at a law firm, going in house at one of our clients, or doing something entrepreneurial, just to take the entrepreneurial leap after discovering Columbia back in 2017, kind of on a on a whim and a twist of fate. So happy to be here. It’s kind of been a crazy journey and now talking to you several years later. So, it’s exciting to do it.
Brett
Fantastic! If people want to learn more about what Adam’s up to go togreencoffeecompany.com, greencoffeecompany.com. So, let’s dive into the kind of topic at hand, which is investing in alternative agricultural assets. What’s the number one secret to doing just that?
Adam
You know, it’s a certainly an interesting asset class to a lot of investors. In our own case, we saw high demand from particularly folks who had previously heavily deployed into real estate and were looking for additional opportunities that kind of tasted, felt, smelled like real estate in the sense that they had hard assets behind them, cash flow opportunity. In our case, some international exposure down in in Colombia, but people that like that hard asset investing and you know want to get things that are off Wall Street, off the stock market. Maybe have done well in real estate or looking for some diversity. It’s not too much of a stretch for people who want to stay in stay in a similar lane.
Brett
Absolutely, that’s fascinating. And so, you said you stumbled across this opportunity in Colombia. And what about the opportunity was most attractive, and how is it turning out so far?
Adam
I came down to Colombia and met my now business partner, who was starting the company. It’s called the Green Coffee Company. We had the thesis that we could consolidate in a very highly fragmented industry, being Colombian coffee and sell downstream into developed markets because of the high awareness, especially for U.S. consumers and the synonymous nature between Colombian coffee, that we could create a new story by becoming the farmers in Colombia. So, my initial role with the business, as you mentioned, I was a capital markets attorney, raised capital for businesses in the U.S. The investor base that we were working with were investors who were looking for that international exposure and opportunities in in Colombia specifically, but when. Raising capital from them, the same rules and regulations applied as if we’re.
Brett
So, if you like this little, short clip of the interview I just did, click over here to watch the full interview, and please don’t forget to subscribe. Thanks so much, everybody.
Watch the episode here:
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About Adam Jason
Adam Jason is the Co-CEO and Vice Chairman of Green Coffee Company, a vertically integrated coffee producer focused on building a scalable farm-to-cup platform in Colombia. He helps lead the company’s growth strategy, capital markets initiatives, corporate governance, investor relations, and expansion into North American markets.
Before entering entrepreneurship, Adam spent several years as a corporate attorney at leading international law firms, advising investment banks and global companies on mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, corporate governance, and other major transactions. His combination of legal, financial, and operational experience gives him a unique perspective on raising capital, scaling international businesses, and creating long-term value in agriculture and consumer products.
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