The Women Leading the Coffee Equipment-Service Trade

Meet the women paving the way for more inclusivity in a historically male-dominated field.

BY JON FERGUSON
FOR BARISTA MAGAZINE

Featured illustration by Kate Haberer

What to know:

• Women coffee technicians continue to face sexism and bias, with many reporting that customers and contractors often underestimate their expertise
• The coffee industry needs more trained service technicians, making technical careers a major opportunity for women in a historically male-dominated field
• Investing in technical training for baristas and aspiring technicians can strengthen cafés and create a more inclusive workforce

In 1951, Lillian A. Baumbach challenged historical gender norms by becoming the first woman in the United States to earn a Master Plumber’s license. The CBS Evening News featured her in an interview with Walter Cronkite, highlighting the rarity of a woman pursuing a plumbing career at that time. Her career choice provided an edgy story for the American people during what soon became the start of a cultural revolution in the United States in the 1960s. Yet, more than 70 years since Lillian earned her Master Plumber’s license, according to a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report in 2025, women only account for 3.1% of the workforce in the category of “plumbers, pipe fitters, and steamfitters,” and 3.5% of employed electricians.

The common narrative of gender stereotypes continues to be reinforced by these realities throughout our society, and is based on assumptions about which careers fit specific genders, often basing these false claims on factors such as level of experience, aptitude, skill-set, and passion. But as espresso service continues to grow continues to grow on a global level, our industry has the opportunity to heavily reflect these preconceived assumptions about gender and the workforce, and to encourage everyone to pursue their passions without expressing personal hesitation or doubt.

While consumption of espresso beverages continues to rapidly grow, so does the growth in the need for qualified equipment service and technical training. Recognizing the lack of coffee-service technicians available draws attention to the current male-dominated workforce, which has stunted the wider potential for growth of coffee-service technicians.

Lillian Baumbach’s journey demonstrates that with passion, encouragement, and opportunities for personal growth, one can overcome societal expectations and turn adversity into admiration. But as women in the coffee-equipment service industry attest, it remains an environment where women consistently face adversity day to day in the field while on service calls.

Facing adversity in the field

Linda Tanaka, subject matter expert support at Nine Bar Tech Co. in Denver, sheds light on her experiences in the field, which began five years ago when she started as a tech. “I’ve trained male techs that customers will continue to talk to instead (of me) about problems when it’s the trainee’s first day, even after (they and I explain that the male tech is) shadowing me. I’ve also dealt with contractors telling me they’ve been doing their job longer than I’ve been alive, only to listen to another male tech—not a superior—when they explain the exact same thing the same way as I had,” says Linda. “As I would mention this to my superior, he would dismiss it and bring up his experiences of various people just wanting to talk to someone higher up. I don’t think I’m alone in recognizing the distinct difference in wording and tone when a customer or contractor wants to be told something by a superior versus by a male. It also sucks to say that I have started to rough up my appearance over the years to reduce the times I get hit on by a contractor at an install.”

Hope Roberts, a coffee-service technician for French Truck Coffee in New Orleans, reflects on unintended sexism as one of the difficulties she has regularly faced as a woman in her role. “The challenge of simply being a woman in a male-dominated industry can be intimidating,” says Hope. “We can more easily be talked down to by business owners we are called to help … I encounter a lot of surprised faces and remarks when I tell people at a location that I am, indeed, the technician responsible for the coffee equipment. They usually ask something along the lines of when (will) my guys arrive to help or when (will) the primary technician be showing up.”

Although she confronts these interactions on a regular basis, Hope says it no longer gets under her skin, and looks at these situations as an opportunity to educate. “Yes, I am a 5-foot-3-inch woman here to work on your equipment, and I am extremely qualified to do so,” she says, noting that every now and then she encounters someone who genuinely believes she cannot do the work.

“That’s unfortunately something that comes with the territory, and I don’t allow it to upset me. I count the day as successful if I’m potentially able to open some closed eyes and show people that anyone can be a technician, regardless of what they look like.”

Rebecca Fox, CEO and founder of Brew Grind Water (BGW) in Wichita, Kan., who previously served on the board of the Coffee Technicians Guild (CTG) as vice chair of education, says that in her experience, people in general doubt the competency of coffee-service technicians, regardless of gender, but that these levels of doubt between gender usually are not equal in how often they occur.

“A challenge you can expect, especially but not exclusively as a woman in this trade, is people assuming you don’t know what you’re doing, regardless of your journey in the trade,” she says. “I’ve endured plenty of sexism throughout the years from men and women. I once even created a fake email for my business using the most “Ken”-sounding name I could think of in an effort to get a response from a manufacturer that was ghosting me for weeks—which worked. I got a reply in minutes, initially to my glee, and then instantly followed by feminine rage.”

The traditionally male barista

The role of the barista in the specialty-coffee industry has drastically evolved since the beginning of espresso service in the early 1930s. In those days, baristas were like engineers, responsible for operating complex, pressurized systems. In the fourth episode of James Harper’s podcast, “The Science of Coffee,” titled “Espresso Technology,” he explores the evolution of the operation of espresso machines, revealing how the barista was originally known as a “machinist” in Italy.

Silvia Bartoloni, guest relations manager at La Marzocco’s Accademia del Caffè Espresso in Florence, Italy, mentions on the podcast that the machinist “could drive a train or could handle an espresso machine,” due to the required experience and knowledge of how to operate and handle highly pressurized mechanical systems that could potentially result in extremely dangerous situations if not operated properly.

As espresso technology improved with modern technologies, many of these dangers were eliminated with the development of safety valves, micro-switches, pressure stats, pumps, and other mechanisms created to provide the barista with safer and easier operation. As machines became more user-friendly, the skill-set and experience required to enter the barista profession was redefined, and the barista’s responsibilities shifted to focus more on customer service and espresso preparation instead of engineering and repair.

It was around this time that women began entering the coffee workforce; however, the gender dynamics of the coffee-service technician did not evolve in the same manner.

Despite more women taking jobs as baristas, technical training and servicing roles within the coffee industry to this day remain predominantly male. In contrast, women constitute a significant portion of the foodservice and barista workforce, while continuing to be responsible for the management and operation of espresso and restaurant equipment daily. Job descriptions for baristas, however, rarely include equipment-related chores beyond the daily cleaning tasks, with the occasional gasket and screen replacement or pump adjustment.

“It’s geographically unrealistic for manufacturers to maintain all the equipment they sell,” says Rebecca of BGW. “Unfortunately, there’s not enough people here that know how to fix their machines to handle the rate of machine sales that are happening.” Rebecca notes that this has become a pretty tough challenge, mentioning that to date, “no single manufacturer or organization seems to be poised in a position to provide a solution for this problem.”

She acknowledges that manufacturers do offer certification and training classes, but mentions, “you need to already be a coffee tech before taking a certification class for it to be useful to you at all.”

Challenges and opportunities in technical training

The disparity in the representation of women in the coffee-service technical field raises questions about the barriers to entry, many of which are derived from preconceived ideas about the skill-sets required for a successful career as a coffee technician.

There was a time when equipment installation and servicing necessitated strenuous physical capabilities, unnecessarily barring many people, regardless of gender, from these roles. But the modernization of tools and processes has significantly reduced the physical demands over the last century. Lillian Baumbach’s experience as the first woman to pass the Master Plumber’s exam highlights the evolving nature of traditionally male-dominated fields.

The Baumbach Plumbing website notes that “modern-day plumbing solutions are continuing to evolve and become more efficient, eliminating much of the heavy lifting that may have once discouraged women from working in plumbing in the past.”

In addition, the assumption that coffee-equipment techs must have basic knowledge in electrical and hydraulic systems often bypasses the somewhat more important experience gained from being a barista. The necessity of clear and concise communication, precision, patience, and critical thinking, along with knowledge of espresso and coffee preparation, are qualities and traits found in many of the best coffee technicians.

“Women are well-suited for becoming coffee-equipment service technicians, as women are often very detail-oriented and like solving problems as well,” says CTG board member Maria Cleaveland, who works for Urnex Brands. Similarly, Marty Roe, owner and instructor for the SCA Coffee Technicians Program fundamental courses at Workbench Coffee Labs in Kansas City, Mo., mentions that women who attend the courses he teaches have continually outperformed men in their testing results.

“Women thrive as coffee technicians,” adds Rebecca of BGW. “Wherever you’re at in your life’s journey or your career, I feel that learning how to craft a trade can be immensely gratifying.”

Overcoming gender stereotypes

Encouragingly, industry voices like Maria’s advocate for businesses to invest in technical training for baristas. Such investment not only enhances the understanding of equipment operations but also improves the diagnostic skills of baristas in identifying potential issues. Clear communication between coffee techs, baristas, and customers becomes paramount, creating a more efficient and knowledgeable staff behind the bar.

The statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reveal that women represent 84% of the workforce in the category of “hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop.” However, the gender balance shifts when it comes to leadership roles. While women make up 53.3% of the workforce in “food preparation and serving related occupations,” only 26.9% of women in this category hold leadership positions as head cooks or chefs.

The juxtaposition of women dominating the barista workforce while being a minority in maintenance and repair occupations highlights the need for a paradigm shift. Encouraging business owners to invest in women in technical roles not only fosters a more profitable and efficient business but also challenges gender stereotypes in traditionally male-dominated fields. Promoting and requiring more baristas to build technical espresso-machine knowledge could be a sound business decision, resulting in a reduction of the frequency of costly service calls. Even basic technical training would equip baristas with a valuable skill-set to help keep the machines running during those busy profitable hours on a Sunday morning.

Hope of French Truck advises aspiring coffee techs to understand the fundamentals of coffee preparation and recommends hands-on experience with equipment. She suggests that anyone considering becoming a coffee tech start with mastering the fundamentals of coffee preparation.

“First and foremost, understand coffee. Understand extraction, brew ratios, blooming, all the things that aren’t technically part of a machine,” Hope says. “Then start looking at equipment manuals, part definitions, YouTube videos. Get your hands on a machine you can take apart and put back together if possible. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to take a weeklong intensive bootcamp (the SCA Coffee Technicians Program at Workbench Coffee Labs) that advanced my understanding of coffee tech astronomically. Invest in yourself and ask as many questions as you possibly can, and most importantly, use failure as a motivator. You will get stuck, and that’s OK! Getting unstuck is what’s important, and retaining and utilizing all the information you can for future fixes is invaluable.”

Jan Anderson, CEO of Premium Quality Consulting LLC in Cold Spring, N.Y., emphasizes the importance of training and efficient service in the industry. “I still work in coffee and am more engaged with techs, technical issues, and service efficiency than ever before,” says Jan. “My partner and I have designed and developed an app for roasters and service companies who need to know what assets they have, where those assets are, and what service they’ve done to them. We want to make the servicing of equipment more efficient and profitable for those who do it. So now I spend a lot of time thinking about service, how it works from the beginning to the very end, and how we can make it better—more profit and fewer headaches.”

Kelsey Browning is an apprentice technician and office administrator for Harmony Coffee Service based in Northwest Washington state, and says that “job shadowing—a ‘day in the life of ’—would be (a great way to determine) if the technician life is for you. A lot of techs get their start as baristas or managers, and then something breaks and they have to fix it themselves. If you have experienced something like that, and have interest in continuing to do so, chase it! I personally did not go out looking for an apprenticeship or job shadow, but when our technician would perform service at the café I managed, I asked if he could teach me what he was doing. I was curious and wanted to know what I could do to maintain equipment for longevity and performance. My interest led to him asking if I wanted to work a few hours a week in his shop, and eventually led to me quitting my management job and diving into a full-time apprenticeship.”

This article originally appeared in the February + March 2024 issue of Barista Magazine. Read more of the issue online here for free.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jon Ferguson has nearly two decades of experience across various facets of the coffee industry. He believes that with a deeper understanding of equipment used throughout the entire coffee supply chain, we can gain a deeper respect for the labor and technology required to transform fruit seeds into the beverages we all dearly love. 

Subscribe and More!

As always, you can enjoy your own copy of Barista Magazine by subscribing or ordering an issue. Long live physical media!

Support Barista Magazine and show your love with a Membership.

Signup for our weekly newsletter.

Join us at Camp Coffee Shop Aug. 10-13 in Napa, California.

Read the June + July 2026 Issue for free with our digital edition.