“What if we built a coffee company that broke the industry—on purpose?”
That’s the question Andy Newbom asked when he co-founded Torque Coffee, a bold, paradigm-flipping roasting company out of San Diego, California. For someone who’s been in coffee for over two decades—helping launch cafes, pioneering direct trade before it had a name, and watching wave after wave of “ethical sourcing” swirl through the industry—Andy had reached a tipping point.
“The coffee supply supply chain works perfectly, but it only works for one end of the chain. It sucks all the value up to the consumer and rolls all the costs down to the producer so there's no real value equity exchange.
The problem was that it worked exactly as intended: all the value flowed one way—up the chain to consumers and cafes—while the costs were pushed downward to producers, with barely a sliver of equity left in origin countries.
So Torque decided to start from scratch. Not just with better beans or flashier packaging, but with a radical pricing model: 20% of every bag’s retail price goes directly back to origin. With fixed margins and more transparent math, Andy was determined to create fair, measurable value and honor that fully. As Andy puts it,
“We’re not asking you to read a 40-page transparency report. We’re asking you to participate in a new model by buying better coffee.”
From the way baristas rotate between multiple espresso options each day to a cold bar that includes zero-proof cocktails and mushroom tinctures, Torque's cafe experience reflects the same values as its pricing model: intentionality, autonomy, and equity. Even the team structure was designed differently—everyone is full-time, cross-trained, and tip-sharing.
But more than anything, Torque is built on the idea that good coffee doesn’t exist in isolation: it exists as a value chain that should be mutual.
This same clarity of values came into play when choosing a point of sale. Andy reviewed over a dozen POS systems—comparing not just up-front software costs, but all-in monthly expenses, transaction fees, and add-on charges. He built a model that adjusted for daily revenue, ticket averages, swipe charges, and feature costs. When the numbers were all in, Dripos came out ahead.
“If your average ticket is under $15—which it is for most coffee shops—Dripos is the lowest total cost solution, no matter your volume. And that’s before you even count what it replaces: third-party scheduling, payroll systems, shift-swapping apps.”
Where other platforms nickel-and-dime shops for basic features, Dripos rolls them into one ecosystem. That means no extra fees for core functionality, no disconnected software stack, and no extra logins.
“You go into most POS systems and they’re like, oh, you want that feature? That’s an add-on from a third party. It’s exhausting. With Dripos, it’s all built in.”
The features Andy uses most? The Hub and scheduling.
“The Hub’s our core. We use it for quick reports, for seeing who’s on shift, for time-off requests, for schedule swaps. And we do all our scheduling in Dripos, which saves a crazy amount of time. You never count the hours you lose on spreadsheets and last-minute coverage calls until you finally don’t have to do them anymore.”
Mobile ordering and integrated third-party delivery options also help minimize clutter and confusion. Instead of managing multiple tablets for different delivery partners, it’s all streamlined into one system.
However, Andy points to the support team as a differentiator.
“I gave blunt feedback on the loyalty feature. I was like, this makes no sense, I don’t even know what I’m looking at. And you know what? They agreed. A few weeks later, the tooltips and wording were overhauled. It actually made sense. I’ve never seen a team move that fast on feedback.”
For now, Torque is focusing on expanding its wholesale program. And Andy recommends Dripos to every new partner.
“We’ve gotten four or five wholesale customers on Dripos just by showing them our cost models. Even if the software costs more upfront, the total cost is lower. It’s simple math. Plus, the integration makes it easier to run a real business.”
Torque is out to rewrite the terms of value—from origin to operations to every shift behind the bar.
“We’re trying to make coffee fairer. Dripos helps us make it easier.”
