{"id":11396,"date":"2022-08-30T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-08-30T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rangeme.com\/blog\/?p=11396"},"modified":"2026-09-28T04:20:54","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T12:20:54","slug":"lua-coffee-shows-how-to-brew-retail-success-on-rangeme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rangeme.com\/blog\/lua-coffee-shows-how-to-brew-retail-success-on-rangeme\/","title":{"rendered":"LUA Coffee Shows How to Brew Retail Success on RangeMe"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Terri Nguyen first learned the concept of entrepreneurship through her father, who found financial success exporting automotive parts internationally. However, when Nguyen was just 15 years old, the South Vietnamese forces collapsed under the rapid advancement of the North Vietnamese. This caused a significant rift in her life and millions of others. When the North took over, they sent Nguyen\u2019s father to a camp and took everything he owned, driving her family to immigrate to the United States. Nguyen first came to America in 1980 with no money or knowledge of the English language. What she did know was that in order to be successful, she would need to work hard, just like her father did. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brewing success<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Thus her journey to success began. After attending high school in New Mexico, Nguyen attended the University of Minnesota, where she studied interior design. As a natural born entrepreneur, she explains, \u201cI just wanted to work.\u201d Nguyen\u2019s first venture was founding a software company called Tertronics, earning her a spot on America\u2019s 50 Hottest New Small Businesses by Entrepreneur Magazine in 1995 and Tertronics was also ranked #31 in Entrepreneur Magazine\u2019s 1996 listing of the 100 Hottest New Small Businesses in America. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After selling Tertronics to Plexus. Nguyen later became the franchise owner of a sandwich shop called Lee\u2019s Sandwiches, which was a popular destination in shopping malls. While her customers loved the sandwiches, she noticed they usually went elsewhere for coffee, and in her eyes was a missed business opportunity. So she created her own coffee brand in Garland, Texas, under the name J2C (an acronym for her kids’ names: Jaclyn, Calvin, and Collin). She sold this coffee in Lee\u2019s Sandwiches shops in Garland and eventually grew the business even further, selling her coffee across Atlanta, Dallas, Austin, and Minneapolis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2016, Nguyen moved on to launch her current business, LUA Coffee, with the dream of sharing delicious, single-serve Vietnamese coffee with unfamiliar consumers. \u201cLUA means silk in Vietnamese and is an acronym for Lasting Unique Aroma,\u201d she explains. Their products include ready-to-drink cold brews, single-serve pour-over coffee, coffee sachets, and oat milk lattes. She currently runs the business in San Diego, California, with her 19-year-old son Colin who is studying Entrepreneurship Business Management. Nguyen also receives financial help from her son Calvin and advertising support from her daughter Jaclyn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Taking flight with RangeMe<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

From the beginning of her consumer packaged goods (CPG) journey, Nguyen took a strong interest in Hy-Vee, \u201cHy-Vee was so popular then and still is now. I couldn\u2019t stop wondering how I could get into their stores.\u201d Miraculously, on a random flight to California, a woman who worked for Hy-Vee sat next to Nguyen on the plane. \u201cI asked her if she could help me get into their stores,\u201d Nguyen explains. \u201cAnd she told me that I would have to go through RangeMe.\u201d With no prior knowledge of RangeMe, she pushed for more answers. \u201cAfter researching online, I found out that not only does RangeMe work with Hy-Vee, they work with thousands of retailers!\u201d It was seven years ago when Nguyen took the original initiative to sign up for RangeMe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From there, her brand has brewed major success. Her first cup of success came after applying for Hy-Vee\u2019s Best of Local Brands Summit and receiving the opportunity to meet with their buyers via ECRM Connect, ultimately landing LUA Coffee on 120 store shelves across the Midwest. Hy-Vee currently carries two of LUA Coffee’s products\u2013the Oat Milk Latte and Original Black Cold Brew. LUA Coffee has since been accepted into new store locations, online in Hy-Vee\u2019s \u201cAisles Online Grocery Shopping,\u201d and is now working with Hy-Vee gas stations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you a supplier looking to expand your retail opportunities? Get guaranteed access to top buyers in your specific category through various ECRM Programs<\/a>!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n