Speciality coffee continues to gain ground among consumers. Although it still accounts for a small percentage of total coffee consumption in Spain, there has been 2,000% growth in speciality coffee over the last five years. The hospitality industry is a huge ally of this sector, as it allows consumers to try new products, learn about them through the keen guidance of the baristas themselves, and take the product home with them.
Third-generation coffee shops serving speciality coffee: arabica, natural, unroasted, etc. are expanding their business model to make their venues more profitable, thanks to breakfast, naturally, but also brunch, product sales, accessories and even specialised training.
Among the latest trends in this type of café are those with their own coffee roaster. They receive the coffee beans and control the roasting process on the premises, a process that has an enormous impact on the aroma and flavour of the coffee.
This is exactly what they have done at Camden Coffee Roasters , a speciality coffee shop with its own roasting machine that started out in Velilla de San Antonio, a small town outside Madrid, and which in January will open its second café in the Malasaña neighbourhood. Their new location will feature a much more powerful roaster and offer their coffee, breakfast and brunch to whoever comes by.
We went to Velilla de San Antonio to find out more about Camdem Coffee Toasters, the project run by Inés Gutiérrez de Juan and Ilker Bafra, who started their adventure in London and came to Spain in 2016 with the idea of delving into speciality coffee.
From 4 to 7 April 2022 at Hostelco we will learn about more innovations, business models and solutions for the hospitality industry.
Rodrigo Domínguez (Director of Barra de Ideas)