Shipping to:
Getting to know Nawar Adra - Founder of Stitch Coffee.
How did the journey of Stitch Coffee start?
Stitch Coffee started in 2015 and how the idea of Stitch Coffee came about was because I felt that coffee does not need to be a standalone. Blending different coffees together can give a more interesting and exciting cup profile. Through this we realised early on that the art of blending coffee is the same as tailoring a piece of cloth. As a result, we stitched together origins with different flavours to bring forward the ultimate cup characteristics for everyone to enjoy.
Can you share more about your local coffee scene in Sydney and what Stitch Coffee's approach to coffee sourcing and serving the local community of your coffee shops?
The local coffee scene is becoming diverse in its product offerings into convenient products, coupled with more people looking to support local brands with ethical practices that positively impacts the whole industry. It is the time of transparency, people are willing to take accountability for their consumer choices and expect businesses they support to share the same sentiment and show that they align with their customers. At Stitch Coffee, we do this through ethically sourcing our coffees, buying from producers and importers who have and are known for their sustainable practices. We also ensure we tell the story of the coffee farm, producers and their community with every coffee we put out.
A trend we have observed in our local coffee scene are a transformation of small coffee businesses into coffee retail stores, providing more than the traditional cafe service. Cafes have evolved to provide consumers with the retail experience too, where people can enjoy coffee by dining it, takeaway cup, purchase fresh beans for home brewing or for gifting, sharing coffee with others and make someone else happy too.
What was the inspiration for Stitch Coffee to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
We aim to provide value and quality driven convenience to all coffee consumers and enable people to have quality coffee at home without complex brewing gear. Convenience coffee products have slow adoption but are growing consistently.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
Coffee is an important engine to start the day for me. I am at our flagship store in Broadway by 7am for a fresh cup. On Sundays I have a pour over at home and then head out for a flat white.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Stitch Coffee as a company?
We are excited to continue evolving our offerings for household products, providing specialty coffee with convenience but maintaining the quality.
Specialty coffee is as easy as anything else to brew if it has been sourced well, roasted well and packaged well.
Getting to know Pil Hoon Seu - Founder and CEO of Coffee Libre.
How did the journey of Coffee Libre start?
After five years of experience as a barista and roaster, I was convinced of specialty coffee's potential. So, I founded Coffee Libre in 2009.
Can you share more about Coffee Libre's approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
Coffee Libre has been engaged in direct trade with coffee origins since 2010. We now source coffee from over 150 farms in 18 countries. Our goal is to connect coffee producers and consumers with diverse, good quality, and sustainable coffees. Our roasting process offers a wide range of roast levels, from light to dark, to suit the tastes of all our customers.
What was the inspiration for Coffee Libre to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
While the Nespresso capsule machine has gained widespread popularity, the selection of specialty coffee capsules is limited. As the capsule market grows, I believed that there would also be a rise in devices optimized for specialty coffee capsules. The development of hardware and software would allow customers to more easily and enjoyably experience specialty coffee capsules.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
The mornings in Seoul are so rushed that I don't have time to grab a cup of coffee before heading to work. As soon as I get to the office, I brew myself an espresso. And I continue to make espresso and filter coffee throughout the day. Maybe it's just one of the perks of working at a coffee company.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Coffee Libre as a brand?
Coffee Libre seeks to form a closer relationship with coffee origins beyond merely being coffee buyers. We have a farm in Nicaragua and are collaborating with coffee producers in several countries. Specialty coffee has been experiencing significant growth in coffee origins in recent years. We want to join this movement and continue to promote to Korean consumers.
Getting to know Jeongsoo Pak & Jooyeon Jeon - CEOs of Momos Coffee.
How did the journey of Momos Coffee start?
Our journey started with a tiny 140 sq. ft. takeaway cafe that opened in 2007 with little expertise. Alongside a handful of regular customers, we have consistently been at the forefront of interesting coffee stories, and sometimes even stories about life. We started with a promise to do the basics well, and we hope that through the coffees we make, the lives of coffee makers, producers, and enthusiasts a whole lot better.
Can you share more about Momos Coffee's approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
When it comes to roasting, our focus is on developing a final cup of coffee that is clean and balanced, while expressing the unique flavours that different regions, terroir, and varietals bring. We want to give our customers a rich experience.
In terms of sourcing, what's important to us is the good relationship we've developed with the farmers. Currently, we are doing direct trade with around 80 farmers from 15 countries. When a farmer produces high-quality coffee, we strive to purchase it at a reasonable price. Then, based on the characteristics of their coffees, we roast and introduce them to our consumers.
What was the inspiration for Momos Coffee to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
With the rise in coffee consumption and the gradual development of the coffee industry's technology, the era has arrived when consumers can enjoy coffee more easily and conveniently. Capsule coffee was created to reflect this. We decided that capsule coffee will lower the entry barrier for specialty coffee and make it an accessible way for the public to enjoy coffee more comfortably, so we introduced Momos Coffee in capsules.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
Upon arriving at work, I immediately go to the bar, drop off my iced drip coffee, and begin working with a cup of coffee. I don't think there's anything that can wake you up in the morning like that.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Momos Coffee as a brand?
To put it briefly, I think our slogan encompasses all of its meanings - Specialty for all.
Our goal is for more people to be able to experience our brand, and we aim to collaborate with a variety of brands that share our values and texture as we move forward. Even if they are not in the same industry, we are focused on promoting our brand with various cultures that can create synergy through each other's colours.
Getting to know Jemal Murat - Founder of Jack Murat.
How did the journey of Jack Murat start?
The journey starts in 1929, when my grandfather Hymet Murat arrived in Australia. Everyone called him Jack. In the fields of tropical Queensland, Jack helped sow the seeds of the region's agricultural industry and the beginning of a family tradition working on the land. Almost 90 years later, we made the decision as a family to use the same fertile ground and ideal tropical conditions to grow Arabica coffee. As a mark of respect, we’ve put Jack’s name on the label.
Can you share more about Jack Murat's approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
Jack Murat is exclusively sourced from our beloved family farm. Each year around July, with favourable weather and tender care we undertake harvesting and processing – each time refining and tinkering to bring nuanced shifts in flavour. The roasting process is then tailored to best accentuate the harvest and its lots for a specific year – something we trust you will taste in every cup.
What was the inspiration for Jack Murat to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
It was simply the opportunity to feature in the homes of our customers. We recognise the growing embrace of specialty coffee at home and it is our keen interest to be a part of that.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
The sunrise charge of my two children serves as an alarm spurring me into action; and making my wife and I an espresso.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Jack Murat as a brand?
The prospects of our most recent harvest and resolutely continuing our path of elevating Australian coffee. It’s a life project and we won’t be content until Australia can be counted among the world’s best growing nations.
Getting to know Terrence Tan - Founder of Tad Coffee.
How did the journey of Tad Coffee start?
Tad Coffee Company was established in 2018, by a group of friends, led by Terence Tan.
The aim for TAD is to provide better quality coffee, barista training and education to our retailers.
Can you share more about Tad Coffee's approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
We are always on a constant lookout for coffee that has quality and good potential, keeping in touch with our traders and finding value in the green coffee which will provide a consistent cup quality to our wholesale and consumer base.
What was the inspiration for Tad Coffee to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
We want good coffee to be approachable and easy for most people. Having our coffee made into Nespresso-compatible pods allow us to reach out to more consumers and provide an alternative taste approach to coffee.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
As a local boy, I got to start my day with a Kopi-O and that sets the base for the day. On days that I need a quick fix before getting out of the house, I'll have a couple of shots of our Aviary pods.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Tad Coffee as a business?
I'm excited about the different green coffee that we can purchase and creating different taste experiences for our customers, whether it be blends or single-origin coffees.
I see TAD to be growing through different prongs of the coffee business - creating different experiences through coffee, via a retail and learning experience.
Getting to know Shae Macnamara - CEO & Founder of Expat. Roasters
How did the journey of Expat. Roasters began?
It started in 2016, when I realised the need for a full-service coffee brand in Indonesia - a company that could understand and pass on knowledge about all aspects of the industry from the farm level through to roasting or pouring a beautiful cup of coffee in a cafe.
Can you share more about Expat. Roasters' approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
We are blessed to have access to amazing farms throughout Indonesia where we can spend time understanding their challenges, working on new, different or improved processing methods as well as understanding the value in the Indonesian traditional processing methods like wet hulled coffee. We also buy a small percentage of our coffee from some of the worlds best producers to bring variety and education to our team and customers.
Our roasting is always a consumer-first style where we make sure we develop the coffee enough to bring out the sweetness or the character that makes each coffee special. We have a range of omni-roasted coffees as well as specific coffees that are best served as filter, lighter roasts or coffees that shine as espresso roast.
What was the inspiration for Expat. Roasters to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
We wanted to make our coffee accessible through as many different methods and capsules is such a fast growing market which we tested and trialed to make sure we are sharing coffees that delivered the experience we wanted.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
I get ready and head straight to one of our cafes where I have 4 piccolos to start my day.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Expat. Roasters as a brand?
I'm excited about the growth opportunities in other parts of Indonesia and the world. We are exploring our options and what market or area we can grow into next.
Getting to know Paolo Scimone - Founder & Head of Coffee.
How did the journey of His Majesty the Coffee began?
His Majesty the Coffee is a project I started in 2013 inspired by the blooming of specialty coffee market in the UK. My first experience in coffee was in 2005, in London - I was working as barista and I fell in love with coffee but at that time the only commercial grade beans were available on the market.
Between 2005 and 2013, I owned and ran a coffee shop in Italy for 3 years and followed that by working at a local commercial roastery, based in north of Italy. At that time, I was already thinking about starting my own brand of coffee and the only thing missing in Italy, in the jungle of 1000 roasters, was specialty coffee.
I proceeded and started roasting only specialty coffee. Although the growth was slow (because the market in Italy was not ready yet), I'm more than happy of my decision now looking back.
Can you share more about His Majesty the Coffee's approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
We like to source only the best coffee we find on the market, looking at interesting sustainable projects, where possible.
We also started our own projects like "For the Planet" and "Borderless Blend". The former is dedicated to our planet earth, where every bag of coffee sold, we donate the necessary amount to plant a tree in Kenya. The latter was started in support of a colleague in Ukraine - we donated the full amount of sales to support his difficult situation.
With regards to our roasting approach - we roast separately and differently for both espresso and filter coffees, dedicating our best to every lot we source.
What was the inspiration for His Majesty the Coffee to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
Instead of serving only wholesale accounts I wanted to reach the home consumer in 3 ways: Instant, Capsule and Infusion. I decided to proceed with capsule where we spent a year and a half to find the best roasting profile, and we're really happy about the result thus far.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
In the morning I like to have a cup of filter coffee, made with the team at the roastery. I don't like drinking coffee alone, because for me it's not a matter of the caffeine but enjoying a proper ritual.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of His Majesty the Coffee as a brand?
I want to invest into instant coffee and single-serve products like coffee bags (similar to tea) to push people to drink a specialty coffee in every moment of their life, without any complication.
Getting to know Jamison Savage - Founder of Savage Coffees.
How did the journey of Savage Coffees start?
I started Savage Coffees in 2016 in an effort to bring more affordable, high-level coffees to our discerning premium specialty audience. At Savage, we purchase cherries from our fellow producers who demonstrate high agronomic and environmental-conscious methods. We then process these cherries to our standards using innovative and creative processing techniques ranging from classic washed to carbonic maceration. These coffees are both traditional varieties as well as exotics which score at 88-90+. The Savage Coffees model has proven to be highly beneficial for both the brand and local producers.
Can you share more about Savage's approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
We source our cherries from the high-land rainforests of Volcan and Boquete Valley in the Republic of Panama. These farms are all family owned, boutique estates, with meticulous production and harvest standards. We carefully select our producer partners after considering their farm conditions and ability to consistently provide us with the volumes necessary to meet our requirements. Savage Coffees is a relationship-based company and we source our cherries from our partners year after year. We pay a premium for these cherries and expect the harvest selection to be optimal.
What was the inspiration for Savage Coffees to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
Technology has taken a big step forward over the last few years as have customer preferences for better coffee. This important shift has provided us an opportunity to participate in this single-serve market and bring something new and exciting to the capsule-consuming public. Savage Coffees' capsules are made from Polylactic Acid (PLA) and, therefore, compostable after enjoying. These plant-based capsules consider not only the highest coffee quality available, but also consider the environment.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
Well, I am, of course, a coffee enthusiast and enjoy all of the Savage Coffees on offer, but my mornings definitely include drinking several of our capsules. The quality and convenience of our capsules coupled with the Morning Machine is an absolute necessity. This is the reason Savage Coffees and Morning have come together in collaboration; the perfect capsule in harmony with the most advanced capsule machine.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Savage Coffees as a brand?
Consumers are demanding higher quality coffees with convenience. We're thrilled with the direction the industry as a whole is headed in as we are embracing this movement. We are very focused on the single-serve market and have not only the finest coffee capsules available, we also have a line of instant coffees and we'll be announcing news on our ready-to-drink beverages soon.
Getting to know BK Kim - Co-founder of Fritz Coffee Company
How did the journey of Fritz Coffee Company began?
The journey of Fritz Coffee Company started with 6 good friends, all with different skills and expertise, coming together with the desire to build the best cafe experience in Seoul.
Can you share more about Fritz's approach to sourcing and roasting coffee?
Our approach to coffee is simple, we believe that good ingredient is everything and it starts with the green bean that we buy. We've established long-standing direct relationships with coffee producers around the world and deal directly with them - roasting their coffees to bring our their best characters.
What was the inspiration for Fritz to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
We started to see that behaviours of consumers have changed and many people started having capsule machines at home - it was a common wedding gift for couples.
Convenience was important to our customers and that's when we decided that we could share our quality coffee products in an easy-to-drink format - we call them "Easy Coffee"!
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
I am a very early riser - I think it must be because of age, I start my day at 6am usually absorbing knowledge by reading books on coffee, management and self-improvement. This is followed by my coffee ritual, hand-grinding beans and making a pour-over coffee.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Fritz as a brand?
We want continue to build and grow as a brand to build a sustainable business - ultimately to support the well-being and progression our staff members, co-founders and everyone in the coffee supply chain.
Getting to know Jaroslav Tucek, - Co-founder of doubleshot
How did the journey of doubleshot start?
We founded doubleshot in 2010 after having traveled to and worked on coffee farms in Panama and El Salvador. Part of the team were also working and learning from one of the leading Canadian roasters - 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters in Vancouver.
Being close to the best gave us the much needed experience and a different perspective on what specialty coffee means and what it could provide. With this experience we set up doubleshot almost in mid-air, on the flight back home to the Czech Republic.
Can you share more about your local coffee scene in Prague and what
doubleshot's approach to sourcing and serving coffee there?
The coffee scene in Prague is huge and interesting. It is really easy to get a great cup of coffee at many places around the city. In the past 10 years, it has progressed so much so that Prague can compete easily with other European capitals. Though usually small and local, specialty coffee roasters are plentiful and very good.
We in doubleshot run three of our own coffee shops - Můj šálek kávy, Místo, and an espresso bar at Alza.cz. We consider them our showrooms where we serve coffee exactly as we want to and as best as we can. Apart from these three, we provide coffee (wholesale) to hundreds of coffee shops, restaurants as well as to offices and company coffee shops around Central and Eastern Europe.
What was the inspiration for doubleshot to decide to put coffees into the
convenient capsule format?
Our mission from the beginning is to make specialty coffee approachable, make it a common thing and not a luxury. Ease of preparation is an important factor when you want to appeal to a large group of customers, who are time-stressed or who take coffee as necessity.
For a long time, we were not satisfied with the quality of coffee capsules and aluminium capsules were too much of an ecological burden for us to even consider adding to our offering. But soon came the evolution of compostable capsules which gave us a positive step towards our goal which is to make specialty coffee a common standard.
To be frank, part of our inspiration of developing on our own capsule line was the introduction of the Morning capsule Machine. We had tried a few coffees from Colonna Coffee brewed on the Morning and were instantly blown away by the cup quality.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
My days are really varied, so it is difficult to generalize. But I usually start my day with a cup of great tea. While commuting to work, I usually go through necessary phone calls and I have my first cup of coffee at the roastery.
Caffeine is not an energy booster for me so I usually drink coffee just because I like it or whenever we have a cupping session. It always has to be an amazing coffee, I can't drink anything mediocre just because of the caffeine.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of doubleshot as a company?
Tough question. We survived covid, then the economic crisis is on our shoulders and prices of coffee are hitting record highs. I think I am more nervous than excited. I hope all these factors will not stop the amazing change which is going on for more than a decade now in the Czech Republic coffee scene and that doubleshot will still play an important role in making more people hooked on specialty coffee.
On the other hand, we have several big things in the pipeline right now so there is not much time to relax. We are opening a fourth cafe in a premium downtown location; a new, much bigger roaster is on the way and hopefully we will start working on our new roastery, which will be awesome. In a way, I am nervous but still very much excited too.
Getting to know Rob Berghmans - Founder of Caffènation
How did the journey of Caffènation start?
In 2003, I was tired of people in Antwerp making coffee without love for the product and the people drinking it, and so decided things had to be changed drastically. Based in the city of Antwerp, we seek to challenge the coffee landscape, always striving to be one step ahead in both coffee quality and experience.
Can you share more about your local coffee scene in Antwerp and what Caffènation's approach to sourcing, and serving coffee in the local area?
The local coffee scene is lively, young and with many of coffee lovers. At Caffènation we hope to offer people that home-away-from-home feeling you get with a good cup of coffee.
With coffee sourcing, we look for producers who we know to be ethical growers, who share our values and dedication to quality and seasonal freshness. We travel the world in search of beans whose expressive flavour tells a story – the taste of terroir, that unique combination of soil, altitude, water and climate that makes every bean unique.
Plus, transparency means a lot to us. You can trace your coffee’s journey from cherry to cup and know who’s helped along the way. Our transparent pricing means we have no secrets about what or who we pay for our beans.
What was the inspiration for Caffènation to decide to put coffees into the convenient capsule format?
Nespresso is market leader here in Belgium, but all these people with such a machine had almost no access to capsules with light-roasted specialty coffee and adding to the fact that we used compostable capsules (at that time) was almost unseen.
Coffee is fuel to get us moving throughout the day, especially in the morning. What is your daily morning ritual like?
Drinking one big mug of filter coffee with my breakfast and then later on drinking another big mug of filter coffee at work.
What are you most excited about right now and for the future of Caffènation as a company?
Coffee from origin is constantly improving and this we want to tell the world. We want to become a coffee company leading in transparency, diversity and sustainability - for the Belgium region and beyond.