BTW, Laughing Man Coffee

This evening I had coffee with a wonderful person, and my conversation with him led me into thinking of this concept of BTW — short for Businesses to Watch (or you know, something I find to be interesting and want you to know like ‘oh you know, by the way, laughing man coffee is …’)

Fun Fact #1: A hole in the wall coffee shop down in TriBeCa

To be completely honest, I would have probably never come across this shop if it wasn’t for someone else…

If you love coffee, you should definitely check out their pop up concept called the ‘Laughing Man Studio’ next door. Currently, it offers coffee from Ethiopia, Sumatra, and Kenya — brewed in Chemex and V60. The whole experience was perfect, especially because it has an amazing ambiance and charming coffee selections.

Just in case you’re wondering, their flagship store looks like this:

Fun Fact #2: A social enterprise that gives all of its profits back to the community

And this is what excites me the most.

The idea started when one of the founders went to Ethiopia while planting coffee trees in Ethiopia; the experience moved him to do something, and that passion turned into the Laughing Man Marketplace.

All of the coffee beans are sourced from different parts of the world — single-origin, fair-trade, and organic beans roasted locally in Queens. And, get this ALL OF THE OWNER’S PROFIT goes to the Laughing Man Foundation, which is an organization who support educational programs, community development and social entrepreneurs around the world!

Apparently, there is a documentary about their story, and you can watch the trailer of Dukale’s Dream here.

Fun Fact #3: Laughing Man Coffee is owned by X-Men — I mean, Hugh Jackman

A little preamble about this series, in 5–10 years I want to create social enterprises in Indonesia. That’s what I know about and what I’m sure of. But the other details in the fabric — what it is, how it’s going to be structured, who I’m going to serve — are all very important questions that I have a very vague idea of. That’s why I want to find, study, and document more individuals & businesses who have pursued their ideas and passion and made it work :)

Shout out to Cubby Graham for inspiring me and introducing me to a world of unlimited possibilities!