Entrepreneur Spotlight: Matt Lockhart

We’re very excited to kick off our Entrepreneur Spotlight blog series with a look at a good friend of ours in Laramie – Matt Lockhart! Levi & I have had the honor of getting to know the Lockhart family through our Laramie Dance & Arts Center in Laramie. Matt and his lovely wife Davina own two locations for The Human Bean in Laramie – on the east side of town (a convenient walk from UW’s War Memorial Stadium), and a brand new second location in West Laramie (easy to find right off Snowy Range Road on your way to adventure via Highways 130 or 230!) Matt and Davina are generous givers to our community, not only through the support they offer almost daily to local groups and causes through The Human Bean, but also through Laramie’s City Council, Laramie Chamber Business Alliance and Davina’s hard work with Laramie Soup Kitchen. We appreciate Matt taking some time to tell us about his entrepreneurial journey!

WLM: Tell us about yourself!

ML: I moved to Laramie from Northeast Colorado in fall of 1988 to go to college at UW.  I’m the oldest of 4 brothers and one of my brothers followed me to Laramie and also graduated from UW.  I ended up working in the automobile business here in Laramie at McCarty Honda in 1993 and spent 25 years in the automobile business for various dealerships and various roles including sales, finance and management.  I met my wife, Davina, in 2003. She is also a UW alumn.  We married in 2005 and have two children, ages 7 and 9 – Harriet and Stella.  I also have a son, Dorian, who is 30, from my previous marriage. 

WLM: Tell us about your business!

ML: The Human Bean is a franchised drive-thru coffee business.  They started in 1998 and have spread across the country.  We serve gourmet coffee, smoothies, energy drinks, chai, and several food options for those on the go!

WLM: What inspired you to start your business?

ML: I decided to get out of the automobile business after 25 years due to the stress and hours.  I enjoyed all the customer interactions, and the camaraderie with fellow employees, but was just burnt out.  So the day before my youngest daughter was born, I quit.  I didn’t really know what I wanted to do next, and did lots of research on owning my own business.  We determined that 3 things sell in good times or bad–Alcohol, Tobacco and Caffeine…so we got on the Caffeine bandwagon. I researched drive-thru coffee shops, as they seemed to be a growing trend.  Also I didn’t know anything about owning and operating a coffee business, so I decided to franchise with a proven business so I could replicate their business model.  I researched and met with several, ultimately deciding on franchising with The Human Bean.  They are very much like family to us, and I’ve enjoyed working with them over the past 6 years.  Even the CEO gave me his cell phone number once we qualified to franchise with them, and we didn’t sign a contract for 10 months after qualifying.  They never rushed us or pressured us, just helped us in finding a location and guiding us with some lender options.

WLM: What have been some of the challenges you’ve faced growing your business?

ML: Covid was prevalent when we started this business, so we worked through those challenges and restrictions — but ultimately Covid was great for drive-thru coffee shops.  Determining the trends took a while, so we could staff properly.  Staffing has never been an issue, as a result of being located in a college town.  We receive applications/resumes almost on the daily.  Basically we have to make sure we hire the right people and train them properly from day one.  I always say — get the right people in the right seats on the bus. We also have developed a culture at our business that is very important to our success.  We don’t allow drama, cliques, backstabbing, etc…We are a team, and we work as one every day.  Ultimately we’re serving our customers, and understand that Teamwork makes the Drink Work.  So we work hard to make the customer experience the best we can, so we can see that customer again and again.

WLM: What success have you seen in the growth of your business?

ML: We’ve been recognized as Large Business of the Year with the Laramie Chamber Business Alliance (LCBA) in 2022.  I also received Rockstar of the Year with the Franchise Business Review in 2022.  That’s an award for new franchisees of any franchise across the country among 30,000 candidates.  That was a huge huge honor to receive.

WLM: Any thoughts on growing a business in Wyoming?

ML: We love having a business in Laramie.  The business climate is great for it!  We get so much support from our community, and having UW here sure helps with big events being held in town over the course of the academic year.

WLM: Any thoughts on entrepreneurs becoming involved in their communities outside of their businesses?

ML: I feel that if you want to be a successful locally-owned business owner you must support the community who supports you.  We host several fundraisers each year for local youth sports and nonprofit organizations.  We have 4 big Human Bean Givebacks we participate in each year, also, along with every Human Bean.  Earth Day giveback, a Food Drive, a Drive for St. Jude’s Hospital, and our biggest event is Coffee for a Cure.  Every October, we have this event on the 3rd Friday of October.  October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Every Human Bean donates 100% of sales to the hospital or cancer center of their choice that day.  We donate our proceeds to the Ivinson Cancer Center.  They put the funds in their Healing Hands fund, which is a fund for cancer patients to aid in travel and gas and food funds to receive cancer treatment.  We’re honored to help with that.

WLM: Any hopes for the future?

ML: We just celebrated our 5 year anniversary for our first Human Bean on April 9th, 2026!  What a ride.  We also spent 3 years working to open our second location, which we achieved on Feb 10, 2026.  We didn’t believe opening another store in town would be financially feasible, and are humbled we have two.  We aren’t sure what the next 5-10 years have in store for us.  We may keep the stores for our girls to operate as they get older, if they so choose.  Or, we may find a solid Operations Manager in a few years to take over operations.  Or, we may find a qualified buyer to purchase the stores when we’re ready to retire.  That person must hold the same community values we have to keep the tradition of what we’ve built moving forward.

Thanks to Matt for our first Entrepreneur Spotlight! Do you know a Wyoming-based business owner who we could shine the spotlight on next? Give us a buzz at wyolifestylemag@gmail.com or leave a voicemail at 307.755.6896! We also are searching for a sponsor for our Entrepreneur Spotlight series – contact us for more details!