Mhlengi Mluleki Ngcobo, like many other entrepreneurs, transformed his passion for coffee into a viable business that provides value to customers and chances to smallholder farmers in many communities around Southern Africa.
“Our company and brand is about bringing together customer experience and creating opportunities for the communities. We believe that unless we are creating real value and making a difference in
people’s lives we would not have achieved our vision.”
The engineering graduate turned his focus from his engineering profession to the establishment of CoffeeMM, a customer-centric coffee roastery in Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa.
Mhlengi launched the company at the age of 22 while studying civil engineering at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. He grew up with a passion for coffee and drank it on a regular basis. Doctors diagnosed him with Young Hypertension and advised him to stop drinking coffee due to the high caffeine component of coffee.
However, it was difficult for him to adhere to the medical advice, and rather chose to study coffee extensively to understand more about its health benefits and adverse effects.
“Doctors took my blood pressure and it showed a reading of 188/125. The doctor said people with such high blood pressures are usually in a coma,” says the now 25-year-old.
“I was diagnosed with young hypertension (a severe increase in blood pressure that can lead to a stroke) and cautioned to change my lifestyle, and to never consume caffeinated beverages.”
Knowing more about coffee piqued his interest in the beverage, and during a project management course session in college where he had to choose one sort of business to specialize in, he chose the coffee industry and began developing the concept of CoffeeMM.
Mhlengi continued her education in business management and entrepreneurship by finishing a diploma degree in small business administration and management at Stellenbosch University. He subsequently focused his efforts on researching the coffee industry and market in South Africa.
A few years later, he successfully achieved his dream of establishing CoffeeMM on March 2017. In the initial phase of the business, he focused on selling fresh gourmet coffee online and supplying it to restaurants and companies.
“I chose a project of running a coffee roaster and in 2017, I launched my coffee business. At the time I was under the impression that everyone drinks coffee and the business was going to do well. However, I only managed to sell one bag of coffee to a family member. I had to go back to the drawing board and understand what the company needed.”
CoffeeMM has gradually created a coffee shop in Western Cape, where coffee goods are produced and sold on-site. The coffee shop also functions as a teaching facility, producing additional revenue for the company. CoffeeMM is also expanding into foreign markets, working with growers in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, among other places.
“CoffeeMM is currently engaging with local coffee farmers and traders in South Africa, Mozambique, Burundi and Zimbabwe. We have established a database of small farmers. Our aim is to access the international market space through exhibitions.”
“We source fresh green coffee beans from African countries (Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Burundi and also Indonesia) and roast them using reputable coffee roasters and baristas. CoffeeMM sells gourmet coffees, espresso, lattes, hot chocolate and Cappuccinos. With every order prepared with delicacy to meet the customer’s unique preference.”
Today, the company offers different varieties of coffee, including Argon House Blend, Brazil Cerado, Burundi Kayanza, Colombia Buca, Ethiopian Sidamo, Guatemala, House Java Blend, Uganda Argo, and more. CoffeMM also sells different coffee-making equipment and accessories.
Forbes Africa 30 Under 30 Class of 2023, Outstanding Maties Alumni 2022, Business with the Most Potential Award 2020, Best Student Entrepreneur Award 2019, and African Leadership Academy Top 10 Finalist 2012 have all been bestowed upon the 29-year-old CEO.
Mhlengi refused not give up despite selling only one bag of coffee for a whole year when he first started the firm, and today he is happy, fulfilled, and setting more ambitious business goals.
“Looking back, I realize how far I’ve come with CoffeeMM. The effort and sacrifices that are done in secret get rewarded in public.”