With International Coffee Day celebrated on October 1, the HERAUT caught up with Kobus Wiese from Wiesenhof Coffee and Roastery at their offices in Spaarwater.
International Coffee Day is celebrated globally to promote coffee as a beverage. The first International Coffee Day was in 2015.
The business of coffee has changed dramatically since the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic.
The coffee industry has faced serious issues since the pandemic, the biggest of which is not getting the correct beans needed for coffee purchased but getting the deliveries in time.
The customs and importing of the stock constantly face difficulties.
“We were in a fortunate situation when Covid hit our shores that we did not have to let any employees lose their work and that we could carry on as soon as the embargo was lifted,” said Wiese.
Many places sell coffee as part of their day-to-day practices, and if you have a quality product, you will always have people returning to you and wanting to use what you have.
Wiesenhof Coffee and Roastery is dedicated to educating and assisting others in the area. They visit various schools as part of the hospitality curriculum and teach learners about making a good cup of coffee.
“We see this as investing in the youth. That way, there could always be an employment opportunity or earning potential. We all entered unchartered waters when the Covid stay-at-home was lifted and hoped that what we worked for before the time would be sufficient to get our foot in the market again. There are various options and possibilities that we are looking into to get to more of the public in the future,” continued Wiese.
“We take pride in our product and want to bring it to the communities. We first want to concentrate on the SA market before we go out, firstly into the rest of the African continent. To be successful, you must be passionate about what you do. My motto in life is to live in the present but learn from the past,” concluded Wiese.
Part of the learning experience is to tour through the Wiesenhof Roastery, where people learn what happens with the coffee beans from the start to a cup of coffee.
