Founder Spotlight: This Rochester Founder Is Turning Coffee Into a Candy Bar and Shaking Up CPG
- Connected Know
- Nov 18, 2025
- 3 min read
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — After three decades in the food and beverage industry, Rochester native Thomas Seymour is channeling his expertise into a new kind of coffee experience. As co-founder of Moka Energy, a startup launched in 2024, Seymour is on a mission to reinvent how consumers get their caffeine, by transforming the ritual of coffee into a portable, flavorful, and clean-label snack.
For Seymour, coffee has always been personal. “I was introduced to coffee at a very young age at my Nona’s house,” he said. “It always came from a Moka pot, hot, dark, and bitter, until we loaded it with heaps of sugar.” That early memory of the iconic aluminum coffee maker later inspired both the company’s name and its vision: to bring the spirit of Italian coffee culture into modern convenience.
Before launching Moka Energy, Seymour spent 15 years in hospitality and another 15 in consumer packaged goods, holding key roles at LiDestri Foods and Bison Bag. Over that time, he honed his expertise in supply chain optimization, product development, packaging innovation, and sustainability. His experience spans everything from process engineering to brand mentorship, skills that now anchor Moka Energy’s operations.
Seymour first came across the idea that would become Moka Energy years earlier, when his eventual co-founder pitched a coffee candy concept at a local competition. “I saw something unique and promising,” he said, “but at the time, he’d turned his focus toward growing his café.” Years later, as caffeine snacks began appearing at major trade shows like Expo West and the Fancy Food Show, Seymour revisited the concept.
“I tried all of them,” he said. “But the experience always fell short lacking texture, flavor, and enjoyment.” That realization led him to reconnect with his co-founder, merging their complementary expertise in coffee and consumer products to develop a better-tasting, energy-driven snack. “We set out to reformulate, rebrand, and build a product focused on user experience backed by a strong supply chain to ensure success,” Seymour said.
Now operating with a small team of three, Moka Energy is preparing for growth. The company recently secured its lead investor and is raising a pre-seed round, targeted to close in December 2025. Seymour credits much of the company’s momentum to Rochester’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and resources such as Grow-NY and Launch NY, which he describes as invaluable for their funding opportunities, mentorship, and network access.
“I’ve been connected with incubators and accelerators all over the country,” he said. “Grow-NY and Launch NY have been the most valuable, because they pair capital with guidance and community.”
For Seymour, the founder’s journey is not without hurdles. “What hasn’t been a challenge would be the shorter answer,” he said. “Entrepreneurial success isn’t measured in peaks but in how we navigate the valleys.” He keeps perspective through a favorite piece of advice he often shares with other founders: “Grapes must be crushed to make wine, diamonds form under pressure, and seeds grow in darkness. Whenever you feel crushed, under pressure, or in darkness, you’re in a powerful place of transformation.”
Despite building a product with global ambitions, Seymour remains rooted in Rochester, the city where he was born and educated. “It’s my hometown and a great ecosystem for food and CPG,” he said. “There’s a strong mix of manufacturing expertise, entrepreneurial support, and talent here.”
When he’s not in development mode, Seymour enjoys boating on Lake Ontario, grabbing coffee at Rococo, or dining at local favorites like Patron Saint, Bozza Pasta, and Whiskey River. And though he loves to water ski, he admits with a laugh that he still has “a fear of deep water.”
With the company’s first products on the horizon and investor support building, Moka Energy’s blend of industry experience and authentic brand storytelling could position it as Rochester’s next CPG success story—proof that innovation and tradition can share the same cup.
Fast Facts
Category | Detail |
Founder | Thomas Seymour |
Company | |
Founded | 2024 |
HQ | Rochester, NY |
Industry | Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) |
Employees | 3 |
Website | |
Education | SUNY Brockport, Cornell University |
Hometown | Rochester, NY |
Favorite Local Restaurant | |
Favorite Local Business | |
Favorite Rochester Activity | Boating on Lake Ontario |
Favorite Coffee Spot to work, meet and collaborate | |
The Connected Know Founder Spotlight is a weekly feature showcasing the entrepreneurs, innovators, and business leaders driving Rochester’s emerging economy. Each profile highlights the people behind the region’s most promising startups and growth companies. Offering insight into their journeys, challenges, and the ideas shaping Rochester’s business future.
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