Our Story
Lekko has everything to do with a musician’s pursuit for perfection. Early in his music career, French horn player Matt Ashton started working as a barista. “It was a job I could do in the early mornings while still having time for practice and auditions and keep my evenings free for gigs,” he says.
It wasn’t long before Matt became obsessed with every facet of craft coffeemaking. He found himself studying coffee the way he studied music—digging into every detail of coffee-making at work and in his spare time, much like he used to stuff himself into a practice room for hours upon hours. His two loves have a few things in common, after all. “Music and coffee are generally the best part of somebody’s day,” Matt says. They both have the potential to lift your mood or just pump you up for the day ahead.
As owner of Lekko Coffee, Matt does more coffee roasting than concerto playing these days, but the patience and persistence he honed as a musician drive him to fine-tune details that others would leave well enough alone. “Cleveland has the best orchestra in the country, if not the world, and a top tier art museum.” he says. “I think we should have the best coffee, too.”
Our Philosophy
Lekko was born from a deep-rooted love for coffee and the belief that purposeful work and a fair paycheck are the basis of a great product and company.
We take a scientific approach to coffee production so that you can relax with a cup of amazing coffee. Our commitment to providing a living wage—from the farmers to the barista serving your morning cup—ensures that the product you receive is treated with respect at every step. Our commitment to living wages is guided by local bodies that annually publish the minimum living wage in that city/region/country.
Our Process
We roast on a Mill City using beans sourced from importers who ensure equitable pay across the board. We are able to combine our love of craft coffee with data accumulation and a talented team to bring you the best coffee in Cleveland.
What does data have to do with coffee, you say? Thanks to diligent note-taking and some really cool software, we track all the data points needed to keep our coffee tasting consistently great—from bean density to roast profiles to moisture content—batch after batch.
We geek out over the details so that all you have to think about when taking a sip of Lekko Coffee is how great it tastes.