Bunni talks brand, beans and business
The coffee world has significantly shifted over the past 20 years. Coffee has become a specialty rather than just a commodity. For some coffee drinkers now, gone are the days of instant coffee but instead they prefer a flavourful specialty cup, responsibly sourced, with notes of fruit and chocolate. The rest of the world has seen more and more specialty coffee roasters opening their doors and educating people about third-wave specialty coffee.
Upon entering the roastery in Jabal al Weibdeh, the smell of freshly roasted coffee fills the room and you’re welcomed by retail shelves stocked with equipment, merchandise, single origins and blends. You’ll also notice bags of newly imported green beans, and employees meticulously putting freshly roasted coffee beans into bags.
The setup is geared for takeaway, but customers can also hang out to watch the roasting process, chat with employees and ask questions.
“For us, we like to buy from brands who instil a sense of trust in the way they operate and source their raw materials,” Shireen, co-founder of Bunni Roastery said. “You can literally see everything we do when you visit our roastery.”
The story
Bunni founders and married couple, Shireen Muheisan and James Lynes took their enthusiasm for coffee and found a gap in the Jordanian market; providing guidance for businesses and individuals to simplify the complexity of great coffee.
“Whether it’s which beans or roast level to choose, or how to find a balanced recipe, there were many ways for us to support,” Shireen said. “We made the jump into business with the aim of combining our weekend coffee routines with a sense of professional achievement as we contribute to the coffee scene in the region.”
Bunni is all about 3 things: transparency, empowerment and respect…and obviously great coffee! Taking a look at any of their coffee bags, their values are clearly reflected. You’ll find the name of the country, region, farmer and even the coordinates of the exact plot the coffee was sourced from.
“We believe that the customer has the right to know how we work as well as the details about the coffee they are drinking,” Shireen said. “We proudly disclose our sources; they should be recognised for their invaluable contribution in the process.”
Empowerment
Empowerment comes in different forms at Bunni, through self-sufficiency, sharing knowledge and gender equality in the workplace.
“Empowering our partners, especially business partners, is in our interest as it is theirs,” said Shireen. “If a customer is drinking our coffee, whether at our roastery or at one of our clients, we want it to taste as it should and reflect the hard work behind it.”
Even as a small business, females make up 50% of their workforce spread across retail, logistics and even baristas!
Overcoming challenges
We’ve heard this multiple times from entrepreneurs and it’s inevitable that starting a business comes with its own set of challenges.
“The most significant challenge we have faced is the limited resources that are locally available,” Shireen added. “We rely greatly, then, on importing. Factoring this into business planning, with the delays and logistical issues faced over the past couple of years, has been challenging.”
This is why they had to start purchasing raw materials 6 months in advance, to keep up with demand and logistics.
Any business should know its priorities to keep up business continuity and grow, there’s always room to improve but according to Shireen it’s not always feasible in the beginning.
“With no access to financing other than our own savings, we had to prioritise,” Shireen said. “Once we had tested the concept and had built trust among our customers and clients with an established business, we decided to reinvest efforts and resources into branding and marketing.”
Joining Bank al Etihad
Apart from having a business account and being a part of our SME network, you can now find Bunni’s coffee served fresh at some of our new branches in Weibdeh, Mecca Mall, Um Uthaina and Rainbow street. They also registered for Etihad for Business, our latest business banking platform.
“We tend to use it for more day-to-day banking: mainly paying bills and making transfers,” Shireen said. “It is very simple to use without any overcomplicated security processes.”
We’re on a mission to shape the future. Whether your business is new to market, established or even in soft launch, we’re here to simplify all your business banking. Apply for a business account to get free access to use Etihad for Business.
