Nice Coffee Co. – Adapting to Change

I have always been told the importance of staying nimble and the ability to pivot to meet the ever-changing market – especially for a startup in the social enterprise space. But I never thought we would be applying these very principles only 12 months into launching Nice Coffee Co.

We founded the enterprise to give offices and organisations across Australia the opportunity to support school projects through the coffee they drink every day. Using the profits from our coffee and machines supplied to Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, in 2019 we managed to re-build St Johns School in Kibera, Africa’s largest slum – not far from where my family lives.

However, as COVID-19 swept the globe and offices made the switch to working from home, we found a 80% drop in orders. We couldn’t ride out the wave of Coronavirus as we knew it was places like Kibera that are hit the hardest in these times. Our team had been discussing a coffee at home model for a few months, but this was the perfect chance to develop and launch it. A new coffee delivered monthly, and for every household that signs up, we are able to provide 125 days of high-school education.

Looking back, we never would’ve thought that a global pandemic would completely change the game for a given period of time. As this is just the start of our social entrepreneurial journey – it’s been a great learning curve which might just help us in the decades to come. We would also like to thank Minter Ellison and Social Traders for their assistance in these times. 

For anyone interested in getting involved or signing up, head to nicecoffee.org or shoot us an email to info@nicecoffee.org.

Jim Chapman, Founder