The roastery The Brick Coffee and a company offering a new type of coffee product called Ärk

According to the founders of The Brick Coffee, Henry Politanov, Jan Kulbin, and Märten Kuusemets, people often buy coffee randomly, unlike, for example, wine, where consumers are more informed. The goal of their company is precisely to raise people's awareness, emphasizing that there is a difference in coffee. They focus on simple, basic coffee, not flavored or "fancy" products.

Brick Coffee aims through its business model to contribute to a fairer coffee industry globally, which reduces exploitation of both farmers and the land. Smaller players in the food and beverage sector have generally been good educators of consumers, helping people to appreciate product nuances, similar to how the craft beer boom occurred (now distinguishing IPA from lager) or how wine is no longer just red or white, and cheese not just a slice on bread. Locally roasted coffee could be the next beverage industry triumph for conscious consumers.

They buy coffee beans primarily through direct trade, using the direct-trade method from friends or partners in Brazil and Nicaragua. They establish direct contacts with farmers, which often develop over several years of communication where a personal connection is important. This direct model offers mutual trust – the roastery knows who they are buying from, and the farmer knows who they are selling to. For the farmer, this means stability even during poor harvest years, as a direct partner may not immediately look elsewhere, unlike large corporations which can be less flexible on quality and easily abandon farmers. In the large business world, farmers are often at the beginning of the supply chain and frequently lack awareness of the final quality or price of their product, let alone getting to taste the finished drink. Large players can visit a farm, say the bean is poor, buy it cheaply, and sell it for more in Europe.

Freshness is critically important for coffee quality. Coffee does not tolerate travel or low temperatures well. After roasting, coffee needs to rest for about a week so that CO2 can be released from the bean, which would otherwise mask flavor nuances. Freshly roasted coffee used without resting can taste acidic. The best time to consume coffee is about a month and a half after resting, after which quality declines slightly. The "best before" date on the package is six months. Excessive roasting is unhealthy and spoils the coffee. Dark brown, shiny, oily beans are a sign of coffee burnt to death, whose oils tend to become rancid.

Henry Politanov's personal background is linked to the company Coffee People (formerly Gourmet Coffee), from which he left with the desire to expand the coffee culture further in Estonia and bring other players to the market. Brick Coffee does not consider other small roasters as competitors, but sees themselves in the same boat, with a common goal of increasing the market share of domestically roasted coffee in a market largely (95%) dominated by foreign products.

Brick's approach to the market is "purely simple" (puhtalt prosta) – the packaging is simple, not flashy, and the name is also simple ("Telliskivi coffee"). With this, they wanted to create an impression of accessibility and make the coffee feel more homely. Their biggest goal was for even grandmothers to feel welcome entering their roastery, without thinking it was too expensive or fancy.

Currently, the roastery is kept running mainly by business clients. Brick offers them sustainable solutions, such as delivering coffee packages by bicycle, even in winter, which ensures a near-zero carbon footprint for transport. This helps business clients measure their carbon footprint. They are pursuing B Corp certification to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability and transparency. The company is also planning expansion and moving to a larger space while remaining in the same Telliskivi area.

New, hot trend item for coffee gourmands is coffee steeped in a bag, or drip bags. In Estonia, these are offered by the young company Ärk, founded by Artemi Zavalin in November 2024. Zavalin first noticed these bags while traveling, in Japan and later also in Europe.

A drip bag contains a small amount of ground coffee in a special filter bag that is hung on the rim of a mug; the coffee is prepared by pouring hot water over it. Their main advantage is convenience, as there is no need for complex equipment. Ärk's biggest challenge is changing consumer habits, as coffee is a habitual product, and the adoption of new products takes time.

Ärk uses minimal plastic (for airtightness, ensuring a one-year shelf life), and other packaging is recyclable. Zavalin believes that drip bags will not remain a niche product but are a bridge between the mass market (e.g., capsules or instant coffee) and specialty products. He sees them as the future of everyday coffee, as the taste is better than instant coffee and preparation is more convenient.

Source: Äripäev