Fresh Roast Systems

Fresh Roast Systems began operations in October 1998, situating its first beta-test machine at Draeger’s Marketplace in San Mateo, California. Five additional beta-units were placed in test at Larry’s Markets in Seattle, beginning in December 1998. The technology was an outstanding success, immediately helping to increase sales and augment profits dramatically. From that point forward, both the technology and the business model were refined to maximize potential for operators. The result is a fresh-roast phenomenon that is transforming the way coffee shops and supermarkets are doing business.

OUR TEAM

Frederick G. Perkins III

Chairman, President & CEO

Mr. Perkins has been involved in successful entrepreneurial endeavors for more than forty years. After receiving his MBA from Harvard Business School in 1961, he worked for IBM and Price Waterhouse, before beginning the first of his entrepreneurial efforts covering over 35 years with Revco, Calumet Photographic, Cambo Photographic, PhotoMarketplace, Americare Health Services, Americare Group Purchasing and Atlantic Medical Supply. In the fall of 2000 Mr. Perkins was introduced to Fresh Roast Systems and in May 2001 Mr. Perkins funded the company with equity and a secured loan, and in September of 2003 he assumed management of the company.

Matthew Weisberg

Vice President & General Manager

Mr. Weisberg attended Lehigh University, majoring in Marketing and International Relations. He began his career in strategic consulting and systems integration with Coopers & Lybrand and Weatherby Associates servicing clients including Citicorp, Banker’s Trust, Drexel Burnham Lambert, Hoffman LaRoche, MCI, Manufacturers Hanover, Chase and Fleet Financial. Mr. Weisberg has also served as a partner in the private equity firm, Willard Equities where he founded and served as President/CEO of VSoft Corporation and Group 32 Development & Engineering, Inc. which was subsequently acquired by Perkins & Associates, with whom Mr. Weisberg has worked for the past eight (8) years. In 2003 Group 32 received the assets of Fresh Roast Systems, Inc from Perkins & Associates and Mr. Weisberg was appointed VP and General Manager.

John R. Perkins

Systems Engineer

Mr. Perkins graduated from Northwestern University in 1985 with a BS degree, having majored in electrical engineering. His areas of specialization included lasers, laser diodes, semiconductor device physics, as well as digital communications. He has held positions with Motorola in their ASIC’s Group, where he worked in integrated circuit design as well as Iomega, Hewlett Packard and more recently with Qwest. In 2003, he joined Fresh Roast Systems, where he has been involved with the enhancement of several technologies related to the company’s automated ventless coffee roasting machine.

Justin Kuo

Systems Engineer

Mr. Kuo has his undergraduate degrees in applied mathematics and electrical engineering from Northwestern University and a master's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Southern California. Before joining Fresh Roast Systems, he held the position of systems engineer at Johnson Space Center on the International Space Station program, and at BAE Systems on the Army's next-generation medical vehicle. He has also worked as a software consultant at Innolume, where he designed and developed a program to calculate the different properties of an arbitrary optical network.

Frederick G. Perkins IV

IT & Field Service Manager

Fred Perkins attended Lake Forest College, after which he entered the U.S. Marine Corp. in 1981. He spent roughly fifteen years with MicroAge Corporation, where he became an expert in the computer networking field. Mr Perkins has also held network engineering and support positions at Wyle Systems, Inc. and following an acquisition, Arrow Electronics. Mr. Perkins joined Fresh Roast Systems in 2003. Mr. Perkins is also a graduate of the world renowned Willem Boot Coffee Training Program.