Coffee Knowledge Hub

Our original conversation with Dale went for over 2 hours and we didn't want to cut any of the good stuff, so here is part 2. Dale went into his sourcing policy, and decision framework for evaluating which coffees to buy. This is very different to what other competition winners do with their coffee sourcing in their roasting businesses. We continued to explore the bigger themes of translating...

Being the Wolrd Barista Champion and having 20 years of direct experience in the coffee industry is not a free pass to setting up and building a successful coffee business, but that is also the where the joy is. Dale Harris established Ithaka coffee in 2025 and he shares his experiences. We spoke for over 2 hours and have cut the recording into 2 parts. Part 1 shares the vision and describes Ithak...

In this 34th episode we're sitting down with someone who we have wanted to sit down with since before we started this podcast.  Peter Dore-Smith, the founder of Kaffeine in London, has built one of the most recognised specialty cafes in the world.  Over the next hour or so we're going to cover what it actually takes to run a great cafe — not in theory, but in practice. We'll get into t...

Diana Johnston Ledezma doesn’t fit into neat boxes and neither does her highly original coffee brand - Roastersaurus.  It is easy to follow trends - we see it, we like it, we do it. But there are always other ways to achieve the same end goal and there are advantages to doing this.  Brands and products are building emotional connections and communicating intrinsic and extrinsic attributes of the p...

Andrew and Tibor caught up with the super-impressive Mihai Panfil, founder of Origo Coffee — one of Romania's most influential specialty coffee businesses, spanning two cafes, a roastery, and the experimental coffee brand - BrewZeus . He's also the driving force behind the Coffee East Coffee Festival, which brings together over 60 roasters and 30,000 visitors each year in Bucharest. Few pe...

We know that you can only do the right thing by your coffee by ensuring that the water you use to brew it is the best it can be. The topic made waves in the industry in large parts thanks to Maxwell Dashwood and Dr Christopher H Hendon’s book Water for Coffee published in 2015. Now they have brought out edition 2, which is essentially a rewrite of the first edition.  We spoke to Maxwell to learn h...

From being an 'immigrant' who wanted to shed the stereotype by doing something really American to being told later in life that she was 'too American, this is a world competition', Cindy Ludviksen has the shaped the World Barista Championships to be the leading global coffee competition. It has profoundly changed countless lives over its 25 year history and given the barista profes...

What does a coffee career look like when you’re a curious lifelong coffee geek? Meet Ramin N - sales director at Intelligentsia coffee - who shares a ton of insights, knowledge and experience from his 30 year journey in coffee. He has been a barista, cafe owner, trainer, technician, sales manager, sales director and a kind of general manager of a co-roasting business with a foray into retail.  We...

A biography, lessons in mastery, deep insights into the world of coffee and competitions - this interview with the author of Bloom, Tigger Chaturabul and her subject, World Barista Champion 2024 - Mikael Jasin, has something for everyone. Bloom is a compelling story, and we highly recommend it because it will inspire you to achieve your goals, giving you practical advice on how to do it. You will...

In this conversation, Paul Ross reflects on the first year of operating Special Guests Cafe, discussing the emotional highs and lows of opening day, the challenges of navigating a competitive market, and the importance of building a strong team culture. He shares insights on financial management, the impact of recognition and awards, and the necessity of educating customers about coffee. Paul emph...

Today, we're exploring an extraordinary coffee journey that spans two continents and bridges farm to cup in the most direct way possible. Our guests are the sister duo behind a unique family venture: Veruschka and Cliff, founders of Elevate Coffee in Cochabamba, Bolivia, and Vanessa and Yann, who run Muyu Coffee here in Ticino, Switzerland. Together, they've built something rare in the cof...

In this episode of the Coffee Knowledge Hub Podcast, hosts Tibor and Andrew delve into the rising popularity of matcha within the coffee culture. They discuss the operational challenges of introducing matcha to coffee menus, the balance between specialty coffee and alternative drinks, and the health trends driving consumer preferences. The conversation also touches on bar design, customer experien...

Join us for an inspiring conversation with Alejandro Gil Rivera, who inherited a coffee farm under challenging circumstances. With no prior experience, Alejandro has embarked on a journey to transform his farm into a thriving business. Discover how he leverages his project management skills to innovate and adapt, tackling issues like climate change, price volatility, and the complexities of the co...

In this episode of the coffee knowledge hub podcast, Tibor and Andrew speak to the co-founder of Lunjoe, Daniel Greenberg. Daniel discusses how Lunjoe (Lun-joe), a table reservation platform for coffee shops can help to optimise space and increase revenue for cafe owners. It also gives assurance to customers they will have a table, even in a crowded and bustling cafe. He shares insights into the a...

Roasted coffee packaging options are a minefield of misinformation, imperfect solutions and over-engineering. Our guest in this episode is Micah Sherer, co-founder of Skylark Coffee in Brighton UK. Micah spent 2 years researching and looking for the best solution available for Skylark, with one clear objective - remove plastic from the packaging. Micah discusses the purpose of packaging, the full...

Akshat is the founder of Coffee Futures Fund, a  new initiative supporting early-stage coffee shop owners with capital, mentorship, and a trusted peer network. Akshat has a background in brand storytelling and business strategy, he brings over a decade of experience as an operator, investor, and advisor to global growth-stage companies. He has supported founders in raising over $20 million in capi...

We spoke to Jerome Ribot, founder of  Coglode.com  to get the behavioural scientists perspective on the concept of loyalty programs for cafes. Jerome is a coffee lover and was a regular at one of Andrew’s cafes from 2008. His passion for understanding people’s behaviours is contagious. In this interview we focus on the subject of loyalty.  Why are we talking about loyalty - because it is at the he...

Summary In this episode of the Coffee Knowledge Hub podcast, Filip Bartelak discusses the complexities of coffee assessment, exploring both subjective and objective measures of quality. He shares his journey in the coffee industry, the evolution of sensory assessment systems, and the importance of understanding different coffee markets. The conversation delves into the Coffee Value Assessment Syst...

This is an expansive episode about the price of coffee at this inflection point in the market and how it is impacting different actors along the coffee value chain. We talk to our friend Stuart Ritson, the European manager of Osito coffee. Stuart has worked in the coffee industry for 14 years in roles spanning barista to wholesale manager for Workshop coffee and then European sales director for Ca...

Tibor and Andrew finish 2024, season 1 of the CKH podcast, reflecting on trends in the South East Asian coffee industry and why we should be paying close attention to what they are doing in other parts of the world. We also discuss trends for 2025, C-price, latte art patterns and more. Watch the video on Spotify or on the coffee knowledge hub

Guidance for buying, selling, starting and operating a café business Insights from John Richardson Whether you are buying, selling or operating a café business, you need to understand what drives the sellable value of that business. The Café Expert, John Richardson shares his knowledge – defining a sellable business, understanding leases, all the variables to consider in valuing a business and wha...

If you’re a café operator struggling with rising costs and declining revenue, this episode of the  Coffee Knowledge Hub Podcast  is just what you need. We sit down with John Richardson,  The Café Expert , to dive into the numbers and explore practical strategies to boost your margins. This episode is packed with actionable advice that you can start implementing right away. With over 30 years of ex...

Paul’s voice has that croaky sound which is the product of long hours of work at the expense of sleep. While the cafe has dominated his time, he has also needed to continue working on the core business and his additional coaching work. At least he is not bored :) In this episode we talked about the first month of opening of the cafe. Did it go as expected? Were our predictions accurate? This is th...

Imagine going to a trade show on tractors and being served coffee that is better than any coffee you have had before. Or rocking up to a wedding in a field and being served coffee that is as good as your favourite local cafe.  In this conversation with Esther Maasdam, co-founder of Manhattan coffee roasters and founder of her eponymous events business: Esther Maasdam coffee connoisseur, we talk ab...

Since launching the  sustainability reporting course  from the Chain Collaborative we have been curious about the real world impact of sustainability reports. Why would a company invest time and money in creating one, what are the pros and cons of doing it.  Micah Sherer, our friend at Skylark Coffee in Brighton, UK has been writing their transparency report since launching nearly 5 years ago and...