Birthed and increased in Germany, Simon Lieberum may appear like a not likely prospect to be promoting for local kopi over Westerncoffee Yet after an eventful experience with his very first mug of Kopi-C Peng, the guy was a goner for the beverage.
With a history in business economics and worldwide service, Simon has actually remained in Singapore for over ten years currently, where he lives with his other half and 2 youngsters.
Greater than 5 years earlier, he began NO HARM DONE. At the time, he was searching for a quest that can integrate his individual worths with daily job, and he discovered the response in lasting choices for coffee pills.
With a bootstrapped resources of S$ 1,000, NO HARM DONE started its market recognition to show whether the concept was important adequate to be a full-fledged service.
It absolutely had not been a large amount, yet it permitted the group to create a tiny set of coffee pills in addition to some boxes with a logo design that was created by a consultant from a five-dollar site.
The group maintained expenses reduced by utilizing totally free access alternatives for an online store and e-mail advertising and marketing software application. When it comes to advertising and marketing networks, they cleared up with systems like Facebook.
“That was enough to start,” Simon stated.
Yet the concept just genuinely removed when they started presentinglocal flavours Need was gathering, and consumer references were widespread. Simon recognized he had something that included worth to individuals’s lives and deserved his permanent dedication.
So, NO HARM DONE started its trip in 2018 with an extremely clear goal– giving Eastern customers an Oriental option to Western coffee for their capsule makers.
Enveloping the preference of local kopi
The group had the ability to create a miminum practical item (MVP) instead promptly, Simon stated. That’s due to the fact that he thinks the local kopi is currently “perfect the way it is”.
“But making that taste profile come out of a tiny capsule was the tricky part,” he stated.
So why go the capsule course? Simon shared that this is due to the fact that Asia-Pacific has actually been the fastest expanding market for coffee pills worldwide.
Yet, most of this development is based upon the Western concept ofcoffee And also, these pills are commonly crammed in unsustainable aluminium and plastic pills.
“What’s the issue?” Simon questioned. “This region has its own wonderful idea of coffee and tea. We have unique products that are worth being cherished and protected.”
Because Of This, NO HARM DONE looks for to resolve this inequality on the market. Greater than simply utilizing local flavours, the item itself additionally made in Singapore.
“We source all our product ingredients from Asia,” Simon specified. “There is no need for us to ship coffees around the globe when we have great Asian coffees with minimal environmental footprint.”
Sustainability isn’t very easy
On the subject of ecological impact, it deserves keeping in mind that NO HARM DONE is crammed in compostable shells and recycled boxes. Nonetheless, even if an item is recyclable does not indicate it’s in fact being reused.
This was a dilemma that NO HARM DONE identified. To be really lasting and not simply greenwashing, the group recognized they needed to make certain the obligation of being lasting is not simply handed down to the customer.
Hence, the group involved with ecological specialists and market specialists, where they wound up encountering 2 tough realities.
“Firstly, most people do not recycle. Secondly, collecting back and recycling may cause even more harm than not doing it,” Simon noted.
With this expertise in mind, the group knew they required an item that was devoid of hazardous products from the beginning to create a tidy item lifecycle, despite what occurs at the end.
“If consumers would then go ahead and compost our 100% biobased capsules, that’s perfect, but even if just binned, the capsules would be as harmless as a disposed banana peel,” Simon described.
Keeping That, NO HARM DONE currently occurs as a happily Eastern and planet-friendly option to the Western coffee controlled capsule market.
It supplies a membership solution, provided with its site. Its items can additionally be discovered on Shopee, Lazada, and picked ColdStorage electrical outlets.
For the very first month of memberships, they bill as reduced as 54 cents percapsule At the same time, a box of 10 pills is S$ 8.90 in the grocery store.
Kopi for a reason
You could be acquainted with the term “third-wave coffee” which was an activity in the market that was everything about excellent quality. Since lots of customers have actually currently found out to value a great mug of coffee, it appears like a “fourth wave” is showing up.
Some additionally define fourth-wave coffee to be a lot more concerning access, while others think it has to do with technology. To Simon, this 4th wave of coffee is everything about restoring the enjoyable.
“Quality is a must but there is room for experimenting with new flavours and concepts with the younger generation of coffee drinkers,” Simon described.
In addition to sustainability, NO HARM DONE additionally offers the local area, employing elders to maintain them meaningfully involved and socially attached.
“Social isolation is one of the leading causes of suicide in the elderly,” Simon mentioned. “We want to help by bringing people who live alone together, over kopi, to share their stories, make friends and get the support they need.”
On weekend breaks, NO HARM DONE offers totally free kopi to the socially separated senior of Lengkok Bahru. Calling the campaign “Kopi for a Cause”, this is done in collaboration with The Saturday Activity, a charity that takes care of the susceptible and senior.
A brand-new means to take pleasure in
Moving forward, Simon thinks that a location where NO HARM DONE can provide a solid worth suggestion is resorts. This is as lots of resorts nowadays are seeming a lot more environmentally friendly while using a localized experience.
“I envision that premium hotels across Asia will be serving our authentically local coffee experience in planet-friendly capsules in their rooms instead of the same old unsustainable capsules imported from the West,” he shared.
Simon additionally pictures taking NO HARM DONE and the Singaporean kopi society abroad. Contrasted to various other local beverages like Vietnamese coffee or Thai milk tea, however, Singaporean kopi hasn’t gathered as much worldwide acknowledgment.
Yet Simon does not believe this is a large issue when it pertains to growth, simply that the group might need to change their technique.
“I can imagine that a vibrant, colourful store celebrating the best of Southeast Asian street drinks could be a total hit in New York, London, or Dubai,” he shared. “We will figure that out later.”
For 2024, the group is currently concentrated on bringing their items to Thailand and Indonesia.
As NO HARM DONE expands, however, we ask yourself whether business would certainly impact or perhaps displace local hawkers that currently provide typical kopi beverages. To that, Simon thinks that NO HARM DONE does not complete with local hawkers, yet instead commemorates them.
“We take business back from Western coffee capsule conglomerates to celebrate the Asian beverage culture, support Asian grown coffee and tea, and protect our local environment from single use waste that pollutes our oceans.”
Discover more concerning NO HARM DONE below.
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Included Picture Credit Score: NO HARM DONE
