A NEW Yorker who made a new home in Inverclyde plans to ‘fill a gap’ in the area’s business landscape by opening a coffee roastery.

Ryan Casey, 31, has launched Downriver Coffee Roasters at Kelburn Business Park in Port Glasgow after settling in the area.

Originally from Long Island, she moved to Scotland in 2015 to study for a Masters degree in criminology at the University of Glasgow.

She moved to Greenock after meeting her now-wife Caitlin, who comes from Gourock.

Ryan went on to obtain a PhD at the university before securing a position as a research fellow there.

Greenock Telegraph:

When she found herself unhappy in her academic role, she decided to ‘take the plunge’ and began planning for the launch of her own business.

Ryan’s passion for coffee, which was ignited during her time working as a barista in New York, continued to burn as she completed her studies in Glasgow.

She decided to undertake two courses at the London School of Coffee last year.

Ryan told the Tele: “I walked away from that thinking, ‘this is absolutely what I want to do’.

“Luckily, my family was incredibly supportive.

“I just took time to make sure I was going about everything the right way and not rushing into anything.

“I think it’s bringing something really different to the area.

Greenock Telegraph:

“I’ve gotten to meet lots of people around here who really like high quality coffee – but at the very least they have to go to Glasgow to get that sort of thing.

“I was one of those people myself – I had a home subscription to a company based in Glasgow.

“I thought it would be good to have something more local, somewhere where people could do click and collect or pop on in.”

Ryan is already offering several ethically sourced blends at the roastery, which are available for one-off purchases, subscriptions or wholesale.

She also hopes to begin hosting events at the Port Glasgow site soon, including tastings and educational opportunities for those interested in learning more about specialist coffee.

Greenock Telegraph:

Ryan said: “When you’re working with a really high quality product it can be intimidating – and I think coffee is like that anyway.

“You walk into a café nowadays and panic order the first thing you see.

“I would like to make specialty coffee more accessible. For me, that’s at the heart of what I’m trying to do."

Ryan is now looking forward to working with local companies and getting out to meet other business owners in the area.

She added: “Now it’s up and running, it’s about finding where I fit and where the business fits in the community, and finding its own little place and identity.

“I think it’s going to be exciting.”