An initiative of Melbourne Coffee Merchants, The Umuvumu Project raises money for a kindergarten that services the children of Buf Coffee. 

In Kinyarwanda (the national language of Rwanda) the word umuvumu refers to a type of sycamore tree, a long-living species with a broad, strong trunk and far reaching, leafy branches. The trees are planted around homes and villages to provide shade, and in doing so are often used as meeting places for the local community. It’s here that Rwandan people have historically gathered to share opinions and concerns and deliberated on how to progress their society positively.

When Buf Coffee’s founder, Epiphanie, and her son and general manager, Sam, came to name their latest social venture – a kindergarten located just a few kilometres from the coffee washing station, Nyarusiza, in Rwanda’s Southern Province – umuvumu seemed like a perfect fit. A meeting place, where Rwandan people plan and work together to support and uplift each other. And so, in January of 2019, Umuvumu Kindergarten was opened to service the families who farm and process coffee in the local area.

As a frequent visitor to Nyarusiza, Sam had identified the challenge many families face in finding adequate care for their young children during the busy coffee harvest season, when their parents must work on the farm or at the coffee washing station, and their older siblings are attending school (which is compulsory in Rwanda).  In building Umuvumu Kindergarten, Buf has not only found a solution for this problem but is also uplifting the community by providing access to early childhood education, a vitally important stage of learning and development for a child.

Ninebars is excited to be contributing to this initiative.

Last weekend The Cafe Collective celebrated their Annual Awards Night at the beautiful Westin Perth.

We had a fantastic time and would love to thank everyone for coming, particularly those that travelled long distances to be there!

Kevin, Angela and Soraya travelled all the way from Queensland, it was amazing to have them here in Perth for the night and a few days beforehand. We all had such a great time! 

A huge congratulations to our award finalists and winners and a big thank you to the speakers, award sponsors and to Bec for organising the evening. We're already looking forward to next year! It was great to recap on a wonderful year and catch up with everyone.

Read on for details of this years' winners!  

Congratulations to all of our award winners!

The Courtside brand was created especially for Murdoch University. The name ties to its location, sitting alongside Bush Court, in the University's newly refurbished Student Hub.

The fitout of the cafe was designed with a subtle eighties aesthetic. The neon logo and undercounter lighting are tribute to this era, as is the colour palette of teracotta and cottage green. The space we had to work with had quite a small footprint and a relatively low light level, so a backdrop of white and light timber was selected to help maximise the feeling of space.

The made to order menu focuses on a range of bowls, including a popcorn chicken and mash and a vegan buddha bowl. In the display cabinet you'll find a range of sandwiches and salad - all prepared fresh in the Courtside kitchen. 

Courtside coffee is freshly roasted in our O'Connor warehouse.