EXCEPTIONAL COFFEE - THE FLAMING BEAN

Shop All
The Flaming Bean Roastery
Back to Coffee

Old Spike Roastery: What U.S. Buyers Need to Know

Tony Hunt

Hands scooping coffee beans into bag

Old Spike Roastery is a London-based specialty coffee roastery and social enterprise that uses every bag of coffee sold to help people experiencing homelessness. If you’re in the U.S. and want to get their coffee or support their mission, here’s where to start:

  • Visit their online shop to browse blends like Evening Roast and Safe Ground.
  • Check shipping and payment options at checkout before ordering internationally.
  • Consider a U.S.-based mission roaster like The Flaming Bean if you want faster delivery and a domestic checkout experience.

Pro Tip: Before placing an international order, confirm whether Old Spike ships to your U.S. address directly. Shipping policies can change, and it’s worth a quick check at checkout.

Key Takeaways

Old Spike Roastery is a verified UK social enterprise using specialty coffee sales to fund homelessness programs, with a CIC legal structure that makes its mission publicly accountable.

Point Details
Who Old Spike is A London-based CIC (company number 09631073) combining specialty coffee with homelessness support programs.
Must-know blends Evening Roast and Safe Ground are the two signature products; check product pages for roast dates and donation details.
Buying from the U.S. Old Spike uses Shopify; confirm U.S. shipping availability at checkout and budget for customs fees and 7–14 business day transit.
Verifying the mission Pull the public filing history on GOV.UK and check product pages for named partner charities before purchasing.
The Flaming Bean option For U.S. buyers wanting mission-backed coffee without international shipping, The Flaming Bean offers comparable blends with domestic delivery.

Table of Contents

What is Old Spike Roastery and where did it come from?

Old Spike Roastery started in Peckham Rye, South London, with a clear purpose: combine specialty-grade coffee with a genuine effort to reduce homelessness. The company is registered as a Community Interest Company (CIC), a UK legal structure that locks in social mission over private profit. That means profits are reinvested into programs that train, employ, and support people who have experienced homelessness, rather than flowing to shareholders.

The GOV.UK company register lists OLD SPIKE ROASTERY CIC under company number 09631073, with an active filing history and a London registered office. That public record is the most reliable way to confirm its CIC status and accountability.

Old Spike has grown beyond its Peckham origins. You can find them at multiple London locations, including a presence near Cabot Square in Canary Wharf and a South London site you can visit in person. The brand also maintains a Google Play app listing, which adds a digital touchpoint for customers managing orders or loyalty.

Key trust signals at a glance:

  • Active CIC registration on GOV.UK (company number 09631073)
  • Multiple verified London locations on Google Maps
  • Public digital presence via app store listing
  • Published mission statements and impact pages on their website

What Old Spike sells: blends, subscriptions, and more

Old Spike’s product range is built around specialty-grade coffee with a social story attached to every bag. Two blends you’ll hear about most:

  • Evening Roast — a smooth, approachable blend designed for relaxed drinking, typically available as whole bean or ground in multiple sizes.
  • Safe Ground — a charity-linked blend where a portion of proceeds supports homelessness programs. Check the product page for current donation details and roast notes.

Beyond those two, Old Spike offers seasonal single-origin coffees that rotate based on harvest and sourcing partnerships. Roast styles lean toward specialty-grade profiles, with tasting notes published on each product page alongside the roast date, which matters a lot for freshness.

Subscription options let you set a delivery frequency and receive freshly roasted coffee on a schedule. Pause and cancellation policies vary, so read the subscription terms before committing. Gift bundles and multi-bag sets are also available, making them a popular choice for coffee-curious friends who want to support a good cause. Some product pages also list brewing accessories, though coffee is clearly the core offering.

Coffee subscription box with bags and mug

Pro Tip: Always check the roast date on the product page before ordering. Freshly roasted specialty coffee peaks in flavor sometime after roasting, and international shipping adds transit time.

How to buy Old Spike from the U.S.: shipping, payment, and workarounds

Old Spike runs its online store on Shopify, which typically supports major credit cards and PayPal at checkout. That’s good news for U.S. buyers. The catch is that Shopify’s payment and shipping options are merchant-controlled, so whether Old Spike actually ships to a U.S. address depends entirely on their own settings.

Here’s a practical step-by-step for U.S. buyers:

  1. Browse the shop and select your blend (Evening Roast, Safe Ground, or a seasonal pick).
  2. Check the roast date and size on the product page before adding to cart.
  3. Enter a U.S. shipping address at checkout to see if international shipping is available and what it costs.
  4. Review customs and import fees. Coffee shipped from the UK to the U.S. may incur customs duties. Factor that into your total cost.
  5. Choose a payment method. Major cards and PayPal are the most likely options on a Shopify store.
  6. Confirm your order and save the tracking number. International shipping from the UK to the U.S. usually takes about one to two weeks, though this varies by carrier and customs processing.

If direct shipping isn’t available or the cost makes it impractical, a U.S.-based mission roaster is the most straightforward alternative. We cover that option later in this article.

Pro Tip: Opt for whole-bean shipping over pre-ground when ordering internationally. Whole beans stay fresh longer in transit, and you can grind at home for the best cup.

Wholesale, private-label, and event catering with Old Spike

Old Spike works with organizations that want more than just good coffee. Their B2B offerings typically include:

  • Wholesale supply — regular roasted coffee orders for offices, cafes, or retailers who want to stock a mission-driven brand.
  • Private-label programs — custom-branded blends for organizations that want their own coffee product tied to a social cause.
  • Event catering — coffee service for corporate events, conferences, or community gatherings, with the Old Spike story built in.

To start a wholesale conversation, reach out through their website’s contact page. Come prepared with your estimated monthly volume, preferred roast styles, and any specific blend or charity requirements. Lead times for private-label work vary, so build extra time into your project timeline. If you’re a U.S.-based organization, confirm whether they handle international wholesale shipping before going deep into planning.

How Old Spike’s social mission actually works

Old Spike’s model is straightforward: sell great coffee, use the revenue to fund training and employment programs for people experiencing homelessness. As a Community Interest Company, it is legally required to demonstrate that its activities benefit the community, not just its owners. That’s not marketing language. It’s a filing obligation.

The CIC structure means Old Spike’s public filings on GOV.UK include annual reports and accounts that anyone can review. That level of transparency is rare in the social enterprise space and worth using. Pull up the filing history before you buy if accountability matters to you.

Mission-linked blends like Safe Ground route a portion of proceeds to specific programs or partner organizations. The exact donation percentage or program description lives on the product page, so check there rather than relying on general claims. For broader context on how coffee businesses structure community impact, this piece on why coffee supports communities is a useful read.

Accountability signals to look for:

  • CIC registration and active filing history (GOV.UK)
  • Published impact statements on the Old Spike website
  • Named partner charities or programs on product pages
  • Third-party press coverage from UK social enterprise media

Understanding local sourcing and its community impact also helps frame why supply-chain decisions matter for mission-driven roasters.

Where to find reviews and press coverage for Old Spike

Old Spike has been featured in UK press as a social enterprise that proves specialty coffee and homelessness support can coexist in the same business model. Those profile pieces are worth reading, but treat them as one data point, not the whole picture.

For a more grounded view, look at:

  • Trustpilot or Google Reviews — check for consistent feedback on coffee quality, shipping speed, and customer service. A pattern of positive reviews across those three areas is a stronger signal than a single glowing feature article.
  • Site reviews on product pages — these often include specific tasting notes and freshness feedback, which matters for specialty coffee buyers.
  • Social enterprise press — UK outlets covering social enterprise and homelessness regularly profile Old Spike. These pieces validate the mission but rarely test the coffee objectively.

The brand’s Google Play app listing and verified Google Maps presence at multiple London locations also add credibility. A brand with physical addresses you can look up and an app you can download is harder to fake than one that exists only on a landing page.

When weighing evidence, give more weight to consistent customer feedback across multiple platforms than to any single press mention.

What to expect from a U.S.-based mission roaster

If shipping costs, customs fees, or freshness concerns make ordering from London impractical, a U.S.-based mission roaster gives you the same core experience without the friction. Here’s what you typically get domestically:

  • Faster shipping — U.S. roasters ship within the country, so your coffee arrives fresher and usually within 3–5 business days.
  • USD checkout — no currency conversion, no international card fees.
  • Domestic customer service — returns, replacements, and questions handled in the same time zone.
  • Mission-backed blends — roasters like The Flaming Bean offer named charity blends (Evening Roast, Safe Ground) that parallel Old Spike’s model, with proceeds supporting specific causes.

When does importing Old Spike make more sense? If you’re specifically seeking their unique single-origin offerings or want to support their UK homelessness programs directly, the international order is worth the extra effort. For everyday drinking and mission-driven purchasing, a domestic roaster covers both needs without the wait.

For a deeper look at U.S. alternatives, this alternatives guide covers the options worth considering.

A note on mission-driven coffee from our perspective

We’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what makes a mission-driven coffee brand worth supporting. The answer isn’t just a charity percentage on a label. It’s whether the coffee is genuinely good enough to stand on its own, and whether the impact is verifiable rather than vague. Old Spike clears both bars. Their CIC structure means accountability is built into the legal form, not just the marketing copy. That’s the standard we hold ourselves to at The Flaming Bean as well: craft that earns its place, and impact you can actually trace.

The Flaming Bean: mission-backed coffee, shipped to your door in the U.S.

If you love what Old Spike stands for but want a roaster that ships fast, charges in USD, and carries blends with a verified social mission, The Flaming Bean is built for exactly that.

Evening Roast

Our Evening Roast is a smooth, satisfying cup for any time of day, and our Safe Ground blend supports organizations protecting vulnerable people. Browse the full signature blends collection to find the right fit, or check out our charity-linked blends if mission-backed purchasing is your priority. Subscriptions are available, flexible, and easy to manage. Head to The Flaming Bean to place your first order today.

Sources

Use these links to verify claims, check addresses, and find product details before you buy:

Always check product pages directly for current roast dates, donation percentages, and shipping policies before placing an order.

  • en
  • old spike roastery

Comments

Add a comment

Your Cart

Your cart is empty

Continue Shopping