Dispatch started in Montréal in 2012 with one product and one service: cold brew made with traceable coffee and delivered by bike. In 2013 it put what it describes as Montréal’s first coffee truck on the streets, which it retired in 2022. In 2014 it launched its own roasted coffee and opened its first two shops. The flagship café opened in November 2016, a room of 1,800 square feet with more seats than any earlier Dispatch location. A refreshed identity and online shop followed in 2019, and Dispatch now ships across North America.

Dispatch buys most of its coffee from small-scale farmers and co-operatives, mainly through importers who bring it to its warehouse and roasting facility in Montréal. It pays 60 to 100% more than Fair Trade minimum prices and aims to pay above the regional cost of production; in 2024 it paid 80% more than the Fair Trade minimum. The prices and the latest research on farm profitability go into an annual transparency report. Of the 25 coffees contracted in 2024, 36% were bought from women, and every one was bought with transparent payments to farmers.

Nearly 85% of the contracted coffee comes from mostly organic or regenerative farms, and the goal is 100% pesticide-free coffee by 2027. Dispatch does not pursue organic certification, preferring to support smallholders who farm sustainably whether certified or not. The bags are 60% paper and 40% corn-based bioplastic, certified for home composting, coffee grounds are composted, and customers get a rebate for reusable cups.

The café also hosts coffee tastings and educational events, announced through Eventbrite.

Coffee on the shelf

Photograph: Dispatch Coffee