Since January 4, 2017, the Kaffeemacher have been their own independent company (GmbH). We have separated from our parent company, unternehmen mitte, and are taking the step toward independence. In a sense, the Kaffeemacher have grown up.
For 4 years, we were able to develop, experiment, and find clarity about what defines us and how we want to work. This has consolidated into a clear vision that we will pursue even more consistently with this new foundation and autonomy.
Connecting and networking
As the objective of the new Kaffeemacher GmbH, we have stated in our statutes that we intend to act in an associative and balancing capacity across the entire coffee value chain.
On one hand, as before, we will be active in all areas related to coffee, primarily in the training and education sector. We started with training for the catering industry and have recently increasingly trained roasteries as well. In the future, we want to become even more active in coffee-growing countries through training and networking.
Beyond this, the Kaffeemacher will also participate in cafés, roasteries, and farms—substantively, through networking, and as shareholders.
In doing so, we at Kaffeemacher GmbH aim to continue acting neutrally in the coffee market and serving as a bridge—between specialty and commercial, between Arabica and Robusta, between fully automatic and semi-automatic machines, between barista and producer, etc.
Social business and purpose-driven
We have designed Kaffeemacher GmbH to be “non-profit,” though we do not use “non-profit” in the tax-legal sense. The company is purpose-driven, not profit-driven. We see profit as a tool for achieving our goals. By statute, profit cannot be privatized, and upon leaving the company, shareholders can only withdraw their original nominal share value. In other words, in accordance with our statutes, the company's profit is reinvested or utilized throughout the entire coffee value chain. For us, the focus is on balance, as margins in coffee-producing countries are significantly lower than in the countries at the end of the chain where consumption is highest.
Kaffeemacher GmbH starts with two shareholders. Benjamin Hohlmann is the principal shareholder and CEO of Kaffeemacher GmbH. Felix Hohlmann, as manager of Café frühling—which will become a subsidiary of Kaffeemacher GmbH in the future—is also a shareholder of Kaffeemacher GmbH.
Within the framework of Kaffeemacher GmbH, new projects can and should be allowed to develop, which, when strong enough to stand on their own feet, will become independent companies. The condition for this is that they position themselves in the sense described above and understand profit as a means for fulfilling an entrepreneurial purpose. The purpose should always revolve around people and coffee. Then we are on this journey together.
Over the past few years, the Kaffeemacher have become a platform and community of coffee trainers, experts, partner companies, and baristas. Many work in different companies and share their passion and knowledge at the Kaffeemacher.
We look forward to many great coffees, good cooperation, and intense exchange,
Benjamin and Felix Hohlmann for the Kaffeemacher
