About Us | Umeshiso

WELCOME TO UMESHISO

Umeshiso creates joyful silverware in shimmering colors, empowering people of all backgrounds to connect with the beauty of food and beverage. We believe that every person belongs, and every person has a place at our table.

Our star product? The rainbow coffee-tasting spoon, whose gradiant hues symbolize the vibrance of our diverse customer base.

Umeshiso launched in 2019 in Oakland, California and moved to Kansas City, MO in 2020. By 2021 our utensils achieved hit cult status, with Bon Appetit Magazine declaring our Little Dipper the best spoon on the market.

In 2022, we launched chopsticks; in 2023, we launched a full range of flatware and expanded our selection of thoughtful coffee tools and table accessories.

We are grateful to walk this path arm in arm with our beloved community. Thank you for your wonderful support, and for believing in us as we believe in ourselves. We’re all in this together!

From our Founder:

“My name is Umeko and I didn’t know I was going have a gay spoon business. I just worked in specialty coffee for 14 years and always felt super out of place

I’m nonbinary, mixed race, disabled, a proud gaysian, and I love who I am. And I love who you are! But the coffee industry has not always been welcoming to all identities. That’s why I started taking my rainbow spoons to coffee cuppings (tastings). No matter what anyone said to me, my rainbow spoon reminded me that I belong.

It turns out many people related and wanted their own rainbow spoons, so I started gifting them to my friends. Due to word of mouth, I ended up fielding about 100 requests for rainbow spoons. So I created Umeshiso!

Welcome to the center of the spooniverse.”

Sincerely,

Umeko Motoyoshi (They/Them)

Founder, Umeshiso Coffee Supply

Umeshiso Coffee Supply believes in community and mutual aid.

We operate our own nonprofit initiative, Get Psyched, providing free psychiatric care for coffee workers. This initiative is a partnership with the coffee nonprofit GoFundBean.

We also donate on a monthly basis to these amazing organizations, and we hope you will check them out:

MECA PaliRoots Meals Program: provides fresh, nutritious meals to Palestinian children in Gaza.
The Loveland Foundation: provides free therapy for Black women and girls.
G.I.F.T. (Generating Income For Tomorrow): provides financial support for Black-owned businesses in Kansas City, where Umeshiso is based.
Trans & Caffeinated : fosters education, encourages discussion, and nurtures new generations of transgender folx.
SWAN Vancouver: culturally-specialized supports & advocacy for im/migrant women engaged in indoor sex work.
Kansas City Indian Center: provides social services for Indigenous people in Kansas City. Learn more at kcindiancenter.org
Disability Visibility Project: an online community dedicated to creating, sharing and amplifying disability media and culture.
GlitterCat Barista: hosts free, accessible coffee competitions along with a host of initiatives and programs to support marginalized people in the coffee industry.
GoFundBean: an organization to support, uplift, and defend the hourly coffee professional in every way possible. Their initiatives include the Stay Grounded Initiative, which provides free talk therapy for coffee workers.
Nalgona Positivity Pride: an in-community eating disorders and body-positive organization dedicated in creating visibility and resources for Black, Indigenous, communities of color.

To learn more about Umeshiso, check out our Instagram