NWEM Mamapreneur of the Month:
Kerry Mazengia, Giday's Coffee
How long have I been in business? We started our company in 2004.
Why did I go into this business? Starting my own business came from
my desire to stay home with my kids when they are young. I have 4 children,
so having some kind of second income is necessary! I wanted to find
something to do that would help support the family, but allow me the
flexibility of being there for my kids as they are growing up. Starting the
coffee business was actually my husband's idea. He is from Eritrea, East
Africa. His family has a coffee farm in Eritrea. It has been in his family
for many generations. However, a lot of the farm was destroyed during the
long 30 year civil war with Ehiopia. They have re-planted and the new
coffee trees are almost ready for harvest. It is our hope to become the
first importers of Eritrean coffee! As for now, we specialize in African
coffee that is organic and fair trade, from Ethiopia, Kenya, and Malawi.
Our choice to start a coffee company was not only due to having a coffee
farm in the family, but also because coffee is a cultural tradition of
Eritrea, and an integral part of the social interaction among the people.
Neighbors and family visit each other up to three times a day to enjoy and
participate in what is really a coffee ceremony. It is more than just a
drink and go type of thing. For them it is a chance to enjoy every part of
the coffee bean, from its aroma to its taste, not to mention a chance to
catch up on each other's lives. They roast fresh coffee beans using an open
fire, then the hostess spreads the aroma of the fresh roasted beans around
the room by taking a woven tray full of the beans to each person and waving
the steam toward them. Next the hostess will grind the beans by hand for
the right texture. Then, she will prepare the coffee, and the guests will
enjoy three rounds of coffee with each round bringing out different sets of
flavors from the same coffee beans. The ceremony will take
anywhere from an hour to two hours. Eritreans have come to appreciate the
unique flavor of fresh roasted coffee. So, this has become our goal as a
coffee company: to bring that same unique flavor to your doorstep. While it
is not feasible to roast coffee by hand on a commercial level, we do try to
mimic this unique taste by roasting in small batches and only
roasting coffee just prior to delivery. Our roasted coffee is packaged and
delivered within 48 hours of roasting, ensuring coffee that will be as fresh
and flavorful as possible.
What else makes us different? We offer unique and profitable fund-raising
options to support clubs, schools, and other non-profit organizations.
We also offer the traditional Eritrean Coffee Ceremony either as a
fund-raising opportunity or just a special addition to your event.
Last, but definitely not least, we donate 5% of our annual profits to the
Prosthetics Outreach Foundation (POF) headquartered in Seattle, WA. They
are an organization that provides artificial limbs and assistance to
amputees in developing countries. Please see their website for more
information about this amazing non-profit!: www.pofsea.org
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