Vega coffee

Vega Coffee operates as a for-profit social enterprise aiming to restructure the conventional coffee supply chain. Founded in 2014 by Robert Terenzi, Noushin Ketabi, and William DeLuca, the company was established with its primary roasting facility and headquarters in Estelí, Nicaragua. The founders' journey began when Rob Terenzi, while working with a women-run coffee cooperative in Nicaragua in 2006, observed the significant income disparity faced by farmers. This experience, coupled with Noushin Ketabi's expertise as a certified Q Grader and former Fulbright fellow in Nicaragua, and Will DeLuca's involvement, led to the creation of a new business model.

The core of Vega's business model is to eliminate intermediaries by empowering coffee farmers to roast and package their own beans at the source. This vertically integrated approach allows the company to ship freshly roasted, single-origin Arabica coffee directly to consumers in the U.S. within days of roasting. By managing the value-added processes in-country, Vega enables farmers, the majority of whom are women, to earn up to four times more than they would through traditional export channels. The company provides extensive training in roasting, cupping, quality control, and packaging, fostering new skills and creating salaried employment opportunities within farming communities. After proving its model in Nicaragua, Vega expanded its operations to Colombia in 2018.

Revenue is generated primarily through a direct-to-consumer online subscription service where customers can select their preferred roast and grind. The company also serves B2B clients, including universities and offices, through bulk purchases. Vega Coffee has received seed funding from investors such as VilCap Investments and Village Capital to support its growth and expansion. The business addresses the market of ethically conscious consumers who are interested in high-quality, specialty coffee with a transparent and impactful origin story. By cutting out middlemen, Vega offers a premium product at a competitive price point while directly benefiting the farming communities that cultivate the coffee.

Keywords: farmer-roasted coffee, direct-to-consumer coffee, coffee subscription, social enterprise, ethical sourcing, supply chain disruption, single-origin coffee, specialty coffee, Nicaragua coffee, Colombia coffee, women empowerment, fair trade coffee, impact investing, agricultural technology, e-commerce food, sustainable agriculture, smallholder farmers, coffee cooperative, value chain, direct trade