PALM HARBOR — The crowd outside de Bine Brewery on May 9 didn’t gather for a polished corporate anniversary. They came to mark the first 365 days of Charlotte Bean, a mobile coffee trailer owned by high school sweethearts Brett and Mari Ebert.
The couple, together for 25 years, spent more than two decades in Pinellas County classrooms before launching a dream they had carried since the birth of their second child eight years ago.
For Mari, the day brought a series of quiet, emotional breaks. She wiped away tears five times before the afternoon rush peaked, overwhelmed not by the logistics but by the number of people who stood in the heat to support them.
“I never in my wildest dreams thought this for sure would be what it was,” she said. “It more than exceeded anything we could imagine.”
The Charlotte Bean story is one of patience. The name sat on a shelf for eight years, ever since the birth of the couple’s daughter, Charlotte Jean. The Eberts initially scouted for a brick-and-mortar storefront before gambling on the mobile industry.
The transition required leaving the classroom for the technical demands of running a coffee truck. Mari still balances the business with virtual teaching. Brett made the full leap this past year.
“It feels just like a month ago,” Brett said of the year since their May 3, 2025, opening. “I was talking with my co-workers at school while I was there about doing this and starting this dream of ours.”
Mari said the intensity of the first year warps time.
“It also feels like 15 years,” she said. “15 years and also two months.”
Brett was candid about the grit required to keep the window open. Beyond early misunderstandings that required local help to navigate, the current hurdles are found in the ledger.
“The minor hurdles that you face nowadays is the price of things,” he said. “Cost of coffee’s gone up, cost of gas has gone up, but we try not to pass that onto our consumers the best we can.”
The year also brought a shift in perspective. Brett said he began the journey “coffee fixated,” focused on the mechanics of the brew. The reality of the business proved more human.
“I feel like our business is way more so the relationships we’ve made with people and just getting to talk to people every single day,” he said. “That end of it was kind of unexpected.”
That focus on relationships was visible in the roster of local collaborators who joined the anniversary celebration — businesses the Eberts now consider “true friends.” The lineup included Real Barbecue, Blue Chip and Ozona Crumb, whose banana bread Mari joked is “world famous” to their regulars.
“If you have good people in your corner and you’re a good person who doesn’t burn bridges ... it works out,” Brett said. “It makes you believe in the world a little bit more when you see this type of stuff.”
The trailer remains their primary stage, but the private-event side of Charlotte Bean has surged. The Eberts bring their mobile setup to weddings, baptisms and, fittingly, teacher appreciation events at local schools. Demand has grown to the point that a second unit is under serious consideration to handle requests they currently turn down.
The ultimate goal remains a physical anchor. The couple is “very actively looking” for a permanent brick-and-mortar location in Palm Harbor, but they refuse to settle for a spot that doesn’t fit their vision.
“I feel like that’s the piece we’re missing,” Mari said, “is being able to have people be able to sit and work or chat and have coffee.”
For two people who spent their lives serving others in the classroom, the realization that the community was now serving them back was the most significant milestone of all.
“We’re literally just two teachers who wanted to follow a dream,” Mari said. “Especially with teachers in this world and this country ... we’re very under-appreciated and it’s hard. I hate it that so many teachers are leaving the profession, but we had a dream and we love coffee and we want to bring that to the community. We will not be going anywhere. We’re here to stay. As long as you’ll have us.”
Charlotte Bean
Owners: Brett and Mari Ebert
Where: Based in Palm Harbor, but travel to locations all over the Tampa Bay area.
Learn more: www.instagram.com/thecharlottebean