Case Study – How Santos Grinders Helped Shape a Coffee Business

Here we look at how Santos Coffee Grinders have enabled Jericho Coffee Traders to grow their business and thrive.

When James Armitage emigrated from New Zealand to study music in London, he brought with him a passion for coffee that would ultimately become his livelihood in the UK.

Initially selling lattes and cappuccinos direct to students from the back of a specially converted three wheeled Vespa at the entrance to Oxford University’s Library, the Bodleian, James quickly saw the opportunity to develop the business further by roasting his own coffee; which he did from a specially converted garage on the outskirts of Oxford.

Rise of the business

As the quantity of beans he roasted increased, James established a wholesale coffee business to supply local hospitality outlets from coffee shops to hotels in the Oxford area. In November 2016, James added the final piece of the Jericho Coffee Traders jigsaw, when he opened his very own coffee shop in the heart of Oxford City Centre. As James explains, all elements of the business reflect his own love of coffee:

“I have a passion for coffee that I love to share. Whether it is the student who buys coffee from the back of our Vespa, hospitality outlets in Oxford who buy our locally roasted coffee, or the customer who enjoys delicious flat whites or tempting lattes in our coffee shop, I want to introduce each and every one to a better coffee and a better coffee experience.”

Article: How Is Coffee Roasted?

Impact of coffee culture

As such, James not only supplies coffee to local outlets but also provides barista training to ensure that any outlet displaying the Jericho Coffee logo, is serving the coffee in the best possible way. For James, the independent coffee shop represents an entirely different venue to the chains that feature on virtually every high street:

“The coffee chains have done a fantastic job of creating a coffee culture. They have introduced the customer to a variety of drinks that have a consistent quality and taste no matter whether you are in Seattle or Melbourne. It is now the job of the independent coffee shop to take this love of coffee and fuel it further by introducing the customer to more individual flavours, a lighter roast, a further choice of blends and greater education on its origin.”

According to James this coffee education has already started to develop with customers now looking for drinks that feature less milk, and which have a greater coffee taste:

“When we first started serving coffee from the back of the Vespa many years ago, customers were predominantly ordering large milky drinks that in many ways hid the bitter taste of the coffee. Today, the number one choice in the coffee shop is a Flat White, which contains far less milk and allows the flavour of the coffee to come through. This is a clear example as to how our tastes have matured over time.”

Necessary investment

Whilst coffee is James’s love affair, this is not just solely linked to the coffee bean and the drink itself. James has a passion for the coffee industry that extends to the equipment he uses on a daily basis:

“The investment in our first coffee roaster was significant, but it was made because I knew it was the right machine for us at that time. Likewise, when we upgraded to a bigger machine last year, the investment increased but the philosophy was the same – it is the best machine that we can get.”

It is exactly this philosophy which has meant that throughout James’s coffee adventure, the grinder he has always turned to is Santos:

“When I opened up Jericho Coffee Traders coffee shop late last year, I required an espresso grinder that would be fast, quiet and efficient. Having been supplying grinders to some of my wholesale coffee customers for the past few years, I knew immediately that I wanted a Santos."

"I have actually had some customers tell me that they are ‘in love’ with their Santos Espresso Grinder, so I had no hesitation in making sure that a Santos Coffee Grinder was one of the first pieces of equipment I installed in the shop.”

Why Santos works so well

For James, it is consistency of dosage and the ease of use which is key:

"As with any coffee shop, it is essential that you slightly adjust the setting throughout the day to allow for changes in humidity, and with the Santos grinder this is simple and quick to do.”

It is not just in the coffee shop itself that James relies on a Santos Grinder, they are also pride of place within the new roastery, which now also boasts an espresso bar of its own:

“A significant number of our wholesale customers want to buy their freshly roasted beans pre-ground. This means that we need a coffee shop grinder in the roastery that produces a wide range of grinds, at speed, for a variety of different equipment from V60’s to Aeropress and Cafetieres. The Santos #63 coffee grinder does this admirably with the vibrating plate giving superb distribution in the bag. We also have a Santos grinder in the attached espresso bar."

"I have worked with grinders in the past where the dosage can be as much as 5 grams different every time. Whilst for a barista this causes a problem, for an owner it actually means that you are wasting your most expensive asset in a drink. It is for exactly this reason that I knew that an investment in a Santos Espresso Coffee Grinder would pay for itself."

A bright future

Jericho Coffee Traders continues to go from strength to strength, and with the reassurance of Santos grinders behind every element of the business from the roastery, to the wholesale business and most recently the coffee shop, James has a brand that will grow with it.

Nisbets is the exclusive distributor of Santos Coffee Grinders in the UK.