StartUp Podcast: Building The Perfect Cup of Coffee (Season 5, Episode 10)

July 8, 2017 1:58 PM

Mokhtar Alkhanshali is trying to produce the perfect cup of coffee. And he's trying to do it with beans grown in the midst of an active war zone in Yemen. Despite those challenges, his company's first batch earned rave reviews, and sold for $16 a cup at one of the fanciest coffee chains around. But can he turn that early success into a profitable business, or will the challenges of trying to achieve perfection using a supply chain that starts halfway around the world do his young company in?

Show page
Port of Mokha's website

posted by radioamy (2 comments total)

This was a great story and perfectly produced! One of the best episodes of the podcast to date.
posted by bq at 2:37 PM on July 12, 2017 [1 favorite]

I also really enjoyed it. I had vaguely heard about the "$16 coffee" and had written it off as clickbaity and gimmicky, but it was interesting to hear the context behind it. I felt pretty stressed for Mokhtar when they were testing their batches! What a tough business.
posted by radioamy at 6:27 PM on July 12, 2017