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South African Coffee Shop Brand Expands Into Africa

South African Coffee Shop Brand Expands Into Africa

Ghana is the next stop for vida e caffé, a South African coffee shop chain with 79 locations that carved out a niche in corporate environments.

The chain, whose name is Portuguese for “life and coffee,” has 72 locations in South Africa, four in Mauritius, one in Angola and two in London.

Managing director Grant Dutton spoke to How We Made It In Africa about how the coffee shop chain has been successful in shopping centers, retail areas and corporate environments. People are often willing to go outside the building they work at in search of quality coffee, he said. Established coffee shops in corporate buildings can become meeting points for those looking for a relaxed environment to discuss business, and this has become part of vida e caffé’s business strategy.

Dutton said that the company plans to expand vida e caffé into Ghana and Botswana by the end of the year, bringing a slice of the European coffee culture to African streets.

Angola was a challenging market because property and fresh milk are “ludicrously expensive,” he said in the How We Made It In Africa interview.

He also hopes to expand to markets including Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Zambia.