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Boca Java Set to Return, Perk As Many As 160 Jobs

Posted on: Thursday, 22 September 2005, 09:00 CDT

Sep. 22--Gourmet coffee company Boca Java hasn't been based in its namesake city for the past two years, but the company's founders said Wednesday they're coming back -- and bringing as many as 160 jobs with them.

Coffee connoisseurs Bruce and Lynn Frcek launched their online coffee store in Boca in 2001, but they moved to Jacksonville in 2003 to be closer to an important investor, Springboard Capital.

But the recent sale of the company to Blyth Inc. (NYSE: BLY) of Greenwich, Conn., opened the door for Boca Java to return to Boca, Vice President Lynn Frcek said. She expects it to be easier to hire online marketing experts here than in Jacksonville.

"The skills of the talent pool down here are really in line with our business," Frcek said. "Online marketing talent is all in South Florida."

The Business Development Board of Palm Beach County announced the move Wednesday at a meeting in Boca Raton.

The board also announced the expansion of a second company, On-Card Inc. of Delray Beach. It has 20 employees and plans to expand to 40.

The company prints plastic direct mail cards. It received a $34,291 job training grant to teach workers how to use its high-tech printer, said Pablo del Real, the company's chief marketing officer.

Meanwhile, Frcek said Boca Java is negotiating the lease of a 30,000-square-foot building where employees will roast and flavor its high-end beans and fill orders from customers.

Boca Java's two dozen flavors of coffee include Palm Beach Passion, Boca Sunrise and Mizner Estate. There's even Dreidel Delight, a Hanukkah blend that's certified kosher.

The blends are pricey -- an eight-ounce package costs $5.95 -- but the company promises they're fresher than anything you'll find in the store. Sales totaled $6 million last year, Frcek said.

She said it is unclear how many of Boca Java's 40 employees will move from Jacksonville, and she is unsure whether the company would receive public incentives.

But Frcek said she didn't expect problems hiring everyone from executives to coffee roasters, in spite of Florida's tight job market.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Palm Beach Post, Fla.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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BLY,

Source: The Palm Beach Post

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