Our Story

Making people and the planet SMILE about great tasting coffee again!

Environmentalists, fathers, and coffee pod industry disruptors, Frankie Schuster and Michael Sands, met and launched Smile Beverage Werks over a shared interest in sustainability and the belief that you can enjoy great tasting coffee and everyday convenience without harming the environment. SBW's mission is to bring its customers the very best coffee pods on the market. Every day. Without compromise or minimal carbon footprint. “All Smiles, No Guilt” is more than a slogan for them, it’s a way of life.

SBW was born in February 2019 in the bucolic Bavarian Alps where co-founder Frankie Schuster discovered the technology for a fully commercially compostable coffee pod compatible with Nespresso Original Brewers. As an avid home-chef, environmentalist, and construction industry exec, Frankie immediately saw the potential of a gourmet coffee pod that is delicious, convenient, and more environmentally sustainable. 

After heading home to the US, Frankie sought out a like-minded partner to take the invention from speculation to reality. At a local cheese shop, Frankie was introduced to eco-activist and CPG industry visionary, Michael Sands. Michael has been a CEO, investor, and board member for some of the top CPG leaders in social mission and is also on the board of multiple land trusts. He is an agent for change in an industry built on disposability. Michael has made it his mission to support sustainably driven ventures that seek real change in an industry where there is so much waste and misinformation. It was his vision to evolve the pods for Nespresso brewers to a more American-friendly market, helping create Smile's commercially compostable, shelf-stable pods for Keurig Brewers. Both sets of pods offer commercial compostability, quality, and a 12+ month shelf-life without any contradictory plastic packing.

Traditional plastic and aluminum K-cups and Nespresso® coffee pods are largely sent to landfills where the materials persist for hundreds of years. SBW has created a product that tastes exceptional, works in the machines already on your counters, and can be commercially composted.  

Together, the partners are building a company whose goal is to reduce the single-use plastic waste generated by coffee pods, while offering consumers a guilt-free, delicious alternative.

Michael and Frankie are working to provide a brighter future - one pod at a time!