First Black Woman-Owned Coffee Brand in Trader Joe’s Makes a Difference in Kenyan Coffee Fields
Kahawa 1893 owner Margaret Nyamumbo holding a cup of her coffee. (Photo courtesy of Margaret Nyamumbo)
Margaret Nyamumbo is making women visible in the coffee industry, one brewed cup at a time.
Before moving to the U.S. and becoming an investment banker for Wall Street, Nyamumbo grew up on coffee fields in Kenya. She is a third-generation coffee farmer who spent her childhood watching women work the fields but not reap the benefits of being a farmer.
“I saw women in most of the coffee farms, but they were underrepresented,” she said. “They were thought of as invisible on the farms.”
In Kenya, women working on coffee farms aren’t typically compensated for their work because male household members own the land. According to Nyamumbo, women provide more than 90 percent of coffee labor but only own one percent of the farmland. So Nyamumbo wanted to focus on women and show the positive influence they made in the coffee industry.
Women farmers in Kenya with Nyamumbo. (Photo courtesy of Margaret Nyamumbo)
“I desired to set up a women’s fund that goes back to women workers,” she said. “I wanted to find a way to help coffee farmers. I wanted that money to go directly through the social-economic concept. My plan was to focus on women but also include men in the process. So the men didn’t feel that they were taken away.”
So Nyamumbo left the corporate world and ventured off to start her own business. The coffee connoisseur wanted to bring awareness to the coffee industry in Kenya. The country is known to be the ‘crown jewel’ of coffee, and Nyamumbo wanted to share her country’s take on the industry.
“I decided to name my company Kahawa 1893 because ‘kahawa’ means coffee in Swahili,” she said. “1893 is the year coffee was first grown in Kenya. A lot of people do not realize that coffee originated in Africa. I want to be able to share that knowledge with the world while also sharing the richness and fullness of our coffee beans.”
Nyamumbo launched her company and decided to name the coffee blends based on Africa’s landscape. The blends are named after borders surrounding or around Kenya, including Rwandan, Malawi and Ethiopia.
Some of the coffee farmers in Kenya. (Photo courtesy of Margaret Nyamumbo)
“I wanted people to experience an African safari adventure,” Nyamumbo said.
Kahawa 1893 has a selection of light roast, medium roast and dark roast coffee. The dark roast brings up more varieties of flavors. One of those flavors is the Serengeti blend, a popular blend among her customers. The dark roasted blend brings in more of a robust flavor without the bitterness.
“The best way to drink it is without sugar or with milk,” the coffee lover said. “I would brew it using the French press.”
Now, Nyamumbo can share her Kenyan-inspired coffee with more people. Kahawa 1893 became the first Black woman-owned coffee brand to be sold at Trader Joe’s. The recognition made Nyamumbo realize what was lacking in the coffee industry.
“I shop at Trader’s Joe all the time and never thought about Black-owned women’s coffee brand on the shelf,” she said. “I posted the news on social media, and in one to two days, I got one million reactions to it! People are celebrating this achievement, and it’s so surprising. Now I’m getting more requests from Trader Joe’s.”
Kahawa 1893 coffee products. (Photo courtesy of Margaret Nyamumbo)
Nyamumbo wanted to share her accomplishments with her community in Kenya. She made it possible for the workers in Kenya to get compensated for their hard work. When consumers buy coffee at Trader Joe's, they can scan a QR code and send a tip to a farmer's e-wallet. From there, the money will go directly to the farmer. Kahawa 1893 promises to match all tips made to the farmers.
“I want to make a difference in my community and also give back to those who helped me,” Nyamumbo said.
The entrepreneur is continuing her coffee empire by launching Kahawa 1893 in Target later this year.
“My plan is to share the love and unity of coffee [with] everyone,” Nyamumbo said.
Purchase a bag of coffee at your neighborhood stores.