Kape Giting: A Story of Coffee and Courage

Patricia Aira Sales in EntrePINOY

Jun 06, 2020 • 3 min Read

Life starts after coffee, really. One cup of coffee and it seems like good things are coming together for you but combine your coffee with courage and you’ll see a new adventure awaits you.

Kape Giting, a local coffee brand promoting less known coffee products from Negrense coffee farmers, is an example of coffee and courage put together.

The idea began in 2019 on a street in Quezon City called Magiting with its proprietor Jemhra Garcia. Garcia was recovering from depression with coffee and books by her side when a sudden thought came to her mind – “darkness will always be present in someone’s life, but someday that darkness will pass”. This gave birth to “Puso at Tapang”, the brand’s mantra, thinking that mentality would bring change to someone’s life.

Equipped with courage and bravery, Negrense women Garcia and Ana Arca started Kape Giting. Arca is currently based in Negros Occidental while Garcia is in Quezon City. The two chose to have their coffee supplied by Negrense farmers. Garcia says these coffee farmers are among the few who use natural farming methods in their coffee plantation, bringing more flavor and aroma to your cup. Glad that their products are being noticed in Metro Manila, the coffee farmers were thrilled when they heard from Arca that customers loved their coffee. The store’s Kape Kanla-on is their bestseller as its beans are of single-origin and are sourced from the foothills of Mt. Kanla-on.

Aside from being a startup business, Kape Giting carries different advocacies as well. The brand supports and pushes for the welfare of the local coffee farmers by promoting their products. Garcia says they want customers to purchase local Philippine products to help the local economy. More importantly, they want to bring people’s attention to the country’s local farmers’ produce. Along with this, Kape Giting also stands up for sustainable agriculture and responsible consumption because they believe that a healthier environment means healthier coffee and healthier people.

The brand’s logo shows a fist in a cup, signifying that the process of brewing a coffee is like the process of how advocacies are started and sustained. It both involves careful thought process and patience because rash and rushed decisions will not yield good outcomes. The circle surrounding the fist in the cup represents conversations made over a cup of good coffee. Conversations and stories shared over coffee strengthen relationships and bonds between people. Garcia says the coffee advocates “for deep human connections for people to feel a sense of belongingness, hence the mental health advocacy.”

Garcia envisions Kape Giting to finally be an established coffee shop which they plan to name “Books and Beans by Kape Giting” in the next five years. She adds that they hope to see Kape Giting as one of the best coffee brands in the country. Expanding their line of products is also one of their dreams, Garcia noted. To do this, they plan to promote more uncommon coffee producers to more consumers. Like the fist in a cup idea, if they won’t work for it, these plans and visions will stay as mere dreams. Research and continuous study of Kape Giting’s potential market will be one of the keys to achieving these plans. Moreover, they are also on the lookout for different schemes and sustainable innovations to make their business grow while maintaining their position on pushing for a healthier environment.

When Garcia said that there will always be darkness in someone’s life, she wasn’t wrong. However, she’s also right when she said that it will someday pass, one just needs courage and bravery to face their battles and live one day at a time. For now, take your cup of coffee and relax.