Kenneth Shoji attended university in Southern California, far away from his native Tokyo, hanging out and studying at a Starbucks in Venice Beach. After graduating, he took a job at a trading company that took him traveling around the world, and into the lives of business owners, some of whom he found were happy, while others were unfulfilled. The experience prompted Shoji to contemplate how he might build his version of a satisfying life—one defined by a simple, down-to-earth ethos—and led him back to those gratifying cups of coffee he’d consumed during his college years.