Best Coffee Available in the Country
Cape Town, 21 August 2017: Established businesses usually have relationships with suppliers that go back some time. So, for the new kid on the block it can be particularly difficult to break through those established relationships. But, if established firms have a view to help grow entrepreneurs setting up new businesses, selecting a new supplier can be crucial for opening the door that will allow a new venture to thrive.
It is this sort of thinking that informed Government’s BBBEE Codes of Good Practice, a significant element of which is Enterprise and Supplier Development. “South Africa’s large hospitality business, Protea Hotels by Marriott® and African Pride Hotels, identified this as a focus area that we could use in our efforts to impact our society in positive ways,” says the organisation’s Group Procurement Manager, Andrew Towns.
After many months of work on a particular project within the Protea Hotels’ Enterprise and Supplier Development Plan, the organisation is now able to implement a contract for a new supplier of coffee for all the hotels managed by Protea Hotels by Marriott.
According to Towns, “This supplier arrangement is distinct in that we have joined forces with a number of other businesses to provide the support and guidance so important to allow for new businesses, as well as established enterprises, to thrive. Through our partnership with Puréau (a proudly Bidvest company), our hotels will now be supplied with 100% Arabica coffee beans and filter coffee from 4th Avenue Coffee Roasters. Since its inception in 2005, 4th Avenue Coffee Roasters have consistently been rated by members of the public as one of the top coffee roasters in the country. With Puréau’s national support and distribution footprint, Protea Hotels guests can now enjoy a unique artisanal coffee experience at all of our hotels country wide. In addition, we’re proud to announce that, together with Puréau, we will facilitate the creation of a coffee training company called Monty’s Academia, and this is the new business we are supporting.”
The training business is the brainchild of Monty Biyela, who has worked in the industry for some time, including her work in training baristas at 4th Avenue Coffee Roasters. “With her proven track record, Monty has been the perfect choice for us to help in building a business that is black- and female-owned. Our role has been to assist her with the legal requirements to establish the business, open bank accounts, and so on,” Towns explains, adding that the project has also promoted another black- and woman-owned business, HRBEE, which is assisting with the accreditation of the training courses for Monty’s Academia.
Monty’s Academia will be integrally involved in the training of baristas in order to deliver the highest standard of coffee available in the country, while at the same time ensuring the transfer of skills to baristas working in all Protea Hotels by Marriott. Onsite training and regular refresher courses will ensure that baristas consistently provide the high-quality coffee required, as well as being able to offer speciality coffees – of course, with the ability to create latte art.
“Putting together this plan took some effort,” Towns explains, “but it is a win-win for us all. Protea Hotels by Marriott will be meeting the demand among guests, travelers and conference delegates by making our hotels the best coffee destination, whilst also promoting a new business and increasing skills across the board.”