Joshua Small, Creative Consultant

I’m Joshua Small. I help specialty coffee and consumer brands find commercial clarity at moments of growth, change, or uncertainty.

The product is strong. The culture is real. But things have started to feel busy rather than focused. The brand says one thing, the wholesale strategy says another, and the DTC experience lies somewhere in between. Growth is happening, but not always deliberately.

I sit between brand and commercial reality, helping founders make fewer decisions and feel confident about the ones they keep. Sometimes that means clarifying positioning before a rebuild or a scale phase. Sometimes it’s aligning brand, DTC, wholesale, and customer experience so they stop pulling in different directions. The work is practical, hands-on, and close to the business.

I’ve held senior in-house roles at Seven Miles Coffee Roasters, Extract Coffee Roasters, HIPPEAS, and Project Blank – working across brand, commercial strategy, creative direction, DTC, and team leadership. More recently, I’ve consulted for Curve Coffee Roasters and Blossom Coffee Roasters, helping founders sharpen positioning, rebuild content and communications strategy, and align their teams around what matters.

HOW I WORK

Brand Clarity Sprint A focused engagement (typically 2-4 weeks) for businesses that need to get clear before they move. Includes a workshop with your leadership team, a positioning document, and a practical roadmap for what comes next. Best for businesses approaching a rebrand, website rebuild, or new phase of growth.

Ongoing Advisory A monthly retainer for founders who want a strategic sounding board and someone to pressure-test decisions with. Includes a weekly call, async support, and hands-on input on brand, content, and commercial priorities as they come up.

DTC & Commercial Diagnostic An audit of how your brand, website, subscriptions, email, and wholesale are working together (or not). Delivered as a clear, prioritised report with specific recommendations. Designed to be useful immediately, not filed away.

Pricing depends on scope, but I’m always transparent about it early. If you want to know what something would cost, ask. I’d rather have that conversation upfront than hide behind a contact form.

I’m based between Brighton and London. My background spans 15 years across both cities, plus Los Angeles, New York, and Sydney – which tends to show up in how I think about brand, taste, and what makes consumer businesses resonate.

Alongside consulting, I’m building toward long-term ownership in specialty coffee. I’m training in roasting and green buying through the SCA, and working on the operational and sourcing knowledge that sits behind every good coffee business. Part of that work is a sourcing decision toolkit for specialty coffee buyers – mapping landed costs, portfolio risk, and market scenarios across major origins. It keeps me close to the reality of the work, not just the brand layer on top.

If you’re navigating growth, change, or uncertainty and want a clear-headed perspective from someone who’s been inside the work – I’m always open to a conversation.