The Protea cricket player who founded a coffee container business in South Africa

After years of trial and error, as well as another business venture that didn’t take off, Van der Dussen and Cardoso have landed on a successful business, which is rapidly expanding across South Africa.

In 2015, Van der Dussen and Cardoso decided to start an outdoor clothing brand. Knowing nothing about the industry, they spent months doing research and eventually came up with the name “FRDM” (Freedom).

In the five or six years that followed, they kept their heads above water by selling caps, shirts, and eventually leather goods, sunglasses, and liquor. Their best product was their award-winning FRDM Abantu Gin.

While their sales were good, they only sold enough to cover their costs and the time they put into the business. They realised that FRDM would not become an actual business.

However, another opportunity would soon present itself. On most mornings, Van der Dussen and Cardoso met each other for a cappuccino, or a “capp test”, as they called it.

Around 2016, they started toying with the idea of starting a coffee container business. And so, the PTA Bru Company was born. They quickly registered the business and opened a bank account.

Unfortunately, their first location pitch failed because the landlord didn’t like the idea of a container-grab-and-go model. At the same time, Van der Dussen’s cricket career was taking off, so they could never act further on their idea.

However, in 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit and everyone was stuck at home, they picked up the idea again.

From clothing to coffee

This time, they had a few months to plan and get everything in place, since neither of them had to travel for work. Their initial idea was to create their own blend of beans and sell them to different coffee shops.

They ran trials, had tastings and events, and made a lot of effort to convince their first coffee shop client to start stocking their beans, but again, they were rejected at the last hurdle.

“We were obviously frustrated and angry at that stage, having gone through all that effort and weeks of preparation and work just to be shot down at the last moment,” Van der Dussen said.

“It was at that moment that Chris and I just looked at each other and said, ‘Let’s just open our own shop’.”

They faced two key problems, though: They knew nothing about the industry, and they didn’t have anything they needed to open a coffee shop.

Drawing from their previous venture, it felt natural to use the name Abantu Coffee for their new business. Their first location was the High Park Centre in Highveld, Centurion, which only had a butcher and a Wimpy at that stage.

“We thought it would be a perfect spot as it was on the outskirts of the neighbourhood where all the cars had to pass by on their way to the major traffic routes,” Van der Dussen explained.

He told Daily Investor that their biggest challenge was convincing people to see their vision when they started the business.

“We have an unconventional model, i.e. using unwanted space and turning it into something that benefits the community and the surrounding areas,” he explained.

“When we started, landlords and agents would often try to force us into conventional retail space, and when we communicated to them that our concept is different, we would often be met with a no.”

Van der Dussen and Cardoso assured the landlord at High Park Centre that they knew exactly what they were doing and Abantu would be a success.

There was only one problem: They didn’t know exactly what they were doing. Although they could secure the location, they still didn’t have anything else.

Equipment and staff

Not long before, Van der Dussen had met a boiler maker, Adriaan Coetzee, who offered to help him with some construction work on his home, which had been left unfinished when the pandemic started.

“This coincided with the time that we were planning to open the shop, and I asked Adriaan if he could build a container coffee shop,” Van der Dussen explained.

“We didn’t want to buy an actual container as they are very big, bulky and difficult to manoeuvre and convert.”

“I sent him a few sketches that I drew on my phone over some pictures I took of the location, and Adriaan brought that vision to life single-handedly.”

They still needed equipment, and after Googling some places, they found Heavenly Coffees in Centurion, where they showed up two weeks before Abantu was meant to open. There, they met the owner, Francois.

“Hi Francois, we’re opening a coffee shop,” they said. “We know nothing, and we need everything. Can you help us?”

“After realising that we weren’t joking, Francois immediately got to work and helped us with everything from our Rancillio Classe 5 Tall commercial espresso machine, to the smallest cleaning brushes and grinding burrs.”

Francois also gave them crash courses during those two weeks and installed everything in their newly built coffee container.

The last thing they needed to do was find baristas to work in their shop. During the pandemic, a key concern for them was how much baristas were struggling. Many coffee shops were closing, and baristas who still had jobs were often exploited.

They met Alban, their first barista, at a small coffee shop in Faerie Glen, which they used to frequent with their running club.

“We got to know him through the months of lockdown, and when we committed to opening our shop, we knew he was our first choice,” Van der Dussen said.

“He was working long hours and wasn’t earning a lot at that shop, so when we made him an offer and asked him to join our team, he was 100% in straight away.”

They met their second barista, Russian-born Ekaterina (Kate), through one of Van der Dussen’s friends. She also wasn’t too happy where she was working, and was ready for a new challenge.

Alban’s cousin, Justin, joined as the shopkeeper and the final member of their team. “The combination of the three of them gave the perfect foundation for the start of something special.”

Since they knew nothing about running or operating a coffee shop, they relied heavily on their baristas to create a menu, create specials, set operating hours, and do basically everything else.

Opening Abantu

On 5 September 2020, they officially opened Abantu Coffee. Although their friends and family showed up to support them, it took some time before they gained customers organically.

However, soon, their shop became so popular that there would be 10 to 15 people queuing to buy coffee from them.

“When Chris and I started, we knew nothing about the coffee industry,” he explained. “We went in with a ‘we’ll figure it out as we go’ type of attitude, and we quickly realised that there is a lot more to opening a coffee shop than meets the eye.”

“From sourcing raw products to formulating recipes, the first few months were more about learning all there is to know about the business than anything else.”

Not wanting their public sporting personas to get in the way, they purposefully worked behind the scenes for about a year to get an objective opinion on how customers received their brand and products.

They wanted people to love Abantu Coffee because of the quality and experience, not because they knew the owners.

Van der Dussen said that even though they had experience running a company, their previous ventures were all online.

“Being in the coffee industry is much more high-paced and pressurised. People expect their coffee to be perfect every time, and are mostly in a rush to get to work or wherever they are going,” he explained.

Since their business is primarily stop-and-go, the focus is for baristas to connect with customers and put care into their products.

“From a management side, it’s imperative to make sure systems are in place and running both smoothly and efficiently,” he said.

“Customers want their coffee without waiting too long, and with good reason. We all have places to be and people to see.”

Future growth

In the years since, they have expanded to 10 different locations in Centurion/Pretoria, and one in Hoedspruit, Van der Dussen said.

“We are in the advanced stages of opening two more shops in Pretoria, as well as further afield in places like Johannesburg, Mbombela and Polokwane,” he said.

“At this stage, we’re working on a franchising model that is sustainable and beneficial to all parties involved.” He said there are too many vastly overpriced franchising options currently on the market.

Abantu is looking to offer something sustainable that gives young entrepreneurs or investors the best chance of success in the short and long term.

“Until we have that pinned down, we’ll keep expanding organically with the emphasis on sustainability,” he said.

“We have never been in a situation where we’ve had to close a shop, which speaks to our sustainability angle, and we intend to keep it that way.”

He said their excellent management team makes it possible to balance running the business and his cricket career. “Over the years, as we grew, we promoted employees internally to form our current management team.”

For example, Justin Kamfwa, the shopkeeper at the first Abantu location, is the business’s Operations Manager today.

“As a company, Abantu Coffee was conceptualised with people in mind. The people who work in the shops and for the company, as well as our clients who enjoy our coffee on a daily basis,” Van der Dussen said.

“Our aim is to create as many sustainable job opportunities as possible, and we strive to give our employees, or partners as we call them, the platform to further their careers and lives.”

Their employees are given benefits like paid study and maternity leave as well as medical aid; benefits that are unheard of in the often unregulated hospitality and restaurant industries.

“We pride ourselves on great value, without making any compromise when it comes to quality. That’s why people from all walks of life enjoy Abantu Coffee for both quality and price,” Van der Dussen added.

Inside Abantu

Issued on Daily Investor by  Kristen Minnaar | https://dailyinvestor.com/business/91862/the-protea-cricket-player-who-founded-a-coffee-container-business-in-south-africa/