Help Cxffeeblack Repair Break In & Complete Barista Exchange

Bringing the Barista Exchange Program to fruition hasn’t been easy. Jones, Henderson, and the rest of the Cxffeeblack team have crowdfunded, collaborated on sneakers to raise money, toured the country behind a documentary, and drawn academic and financial support from the of Vanderbilt University and MiiR as well as backing from Unapologetic Records, Hyatt Caption, and Sivetz Roasting Machine, all to bring the program to life (while running a roastery and opening a brick and mortar cafe). It’s been a two-year uphill climb, but it culminates today, September 19th, with the five scholarship fellows touching down Stateside. They recently experienced a break costing them over 50k in stolen equipment and necessary repairs. please consider joining them in support as they compete this last weeks of their exchange program, and begin the joint to rebuild what was taken.

Read below for more information on the exchange.

In 2022, Cxffeeblack announced the Barista Exchange Program, a two-part initiative that would send Black American coffee professionals to origin in Africa as well as bring African baristas to expand their knowledge of the trade in America. It was an ambitious plan to say the least, and like all ambitious plans in the specialty coffee industry it ran the risk of fizzling out before reaching completion. The sheer amount of time and money required to pull something like this off already had the deck stacked against the Memphis-based coffee company.

But if you’ve followed the trajectory of Cxffeeblack and its co-founders Bartholomew Jones and Renata Henderson, you’d know it’s unwise to bet against the coffee shop owners/roasters/documentarians/clothing designers. And now, two years later, the final phase of the Barista Exchange Program is about to kick off, bringing five baristas of African descent to America to tour and learn from cafes across the Southern US.

if you’re interested in exploring what becoming an equity partner with Cxffeeblack, check out the link below.

https://wefunder.com/cxffeeblack/