News

Our co-founders had the pleasure of visiting the Snack Nation office in Southern California to tell the story of Kuju Coffee on Brand Builder – a podcast that "brings you the people, stories, and lessons learned from the most innovative brands in the world."

Listen to the Brand Builder Podcast to hear the real deal behind Kuju Coffee and our single-serve pour overs.

Be 1% Better. That’s the tagline for 1% for the Planet’s most recent campaign to challenge the world to do more for our planet. It’s a simple idea, and when put into practice, can create real change one company, organization and person at a time.

Since the inception of Kuju Coffee, we have actively chosen to be a 1% for the Planet member. What does this mean? It means we donate 1% of sales (not just profits) to support causes that help support our planet. For us, we’ve chosen the National Park Foundation because we love our National Parks and want to do all that we can to ensure that they are preserved for future generations to come. After all, who wouldn’t love a quick jaunt up Angel’s Landing in Zion?

In addition to our donation, our decision to be a 1% for the Planet member has been part of a broader effort to build the Kuju brand in a better way. We do better by sourcing coffee from a family farm in Thailand that employs former victims of sex-trafficking. Most recently, we’ve decided to manufacture all of our Pocket PourOver products in facilities run 100% on Wind Power. We do these things so that we can do our part in making an impact. We call it Source-to-Soul™...more on that another time.

Even better, we're in good company with some of our favorite brands like Kammok, Peak Design, Sunski, Regrained, Patagonia and more. 

So I want to challenge you. What will you do to be 1% better?

Let us know in the comments below or visit https://www.onepercentfortheplanet.org/better.

To journeys near and far,
Justin Wiguna
Co-founder

Since the beginning of Kuju Coffee, we’ve stayed close to our manufacturing processes. In fact, the very first Pocket PourOvers that were made to fulfill our Kickstarter campaign were individually hand-packed by yours truly and my co-founder (and brother), Jeff. We would measure out the exact amount of coffee to the gram, fill the filter, seal the filter, and nitrogen-flush every single pouch. It helped us ensure quality in every Pocket PourOver, but quite frankly we didn’t have the means to do it any other way.

However, we’ve come a long way. From Kickstarter to going nationwide with retail chains like REI and Academy Sports + Outdoors or our 2018 partnership with Subaru, the company has evolved, and so have our capabilities in producing Pocket PourOvers. We’ve made numerous investments into our packing and production lines, but just in the past few months, we made one of the most exciting changes.

...all Kuju Pocket PourOvers are now produced in facilities run 100% on Wind Power

As part of our commitment to sustainability and the environment, I am excited to share that all Kuju Pocket PourOvers are now produced in facilities run 100% on Wind Power. This new investment means all of our packing equipment, lights in our facility and anything else that requires electricity is run on renewable energy resources, and brings us one step closer to full sustainability.

We call it “Made with Wind Power”. Look for the icon on our packaging!

This initiative comes in addition to our membership with 1% for the Planet and our commitment to donate 1% of all sales to the National Park Foundation, as we will always strive to do right by our planet.

So next time you brew a Pocket PourOver, look for the “Made with Wind Power” icon and know that your cup of coffee not only tastes delicious, but is sustainable too.

To journeys near and far,
Justin Wiguna
Co-founder

Every year, Kuju launches our annual Send A Cup campaign - when we invite our fans and customers to choose someone to send a Pocket PourOver to, along with a special note they write (or type!) - all compliments of Kuju Coffee. Last year all 100 sends were claimed within the first few minutes of launch, so we’re stoked to do it again this year! Check it out here.

The most touching part of this are the notes people write. It’s frankly touching to see that Kuju could facilitate and be a part of some of these special relationships, so we thank you for letting us be part of that. Below are just a few to peruse and maybe act as some inspiration:

- Thank you for all your hard work and long hours to support our family. You are amazing, and I love you forever!

- Thanks for always being there for me and being such a great adventure companion 💙

- Surprise! Sending you a special treat because you deserve it: today and everyday!! You are my sunshine.

- You always have a smile on your face in the morning and tell me you love me, here’s something to brighten your day. I love you.

At the heart of Send A Cup is our mission - to inspire moments of rest & rejuvenation. We love the Pocket PourOver not only because it lets us experience fantastic coffee wherever we wander, but because the process of brewing it inherently asks us to take a moment to rest and be a bit more present.

The sequenced act of opening the filter, anchoring to your mug of choice, and then pouring hot water over the fresh bed of coffee grounds inside reminds us that all good things take time. It creates space for us to have a moment with ourselves or perhaps another and remember what truly matters to us.

Sharing this experience of rest & rejuvenation is what’s at the heart of Send A Cup and we are very glad to make it happen again.  So think of someone who matters to you and send them a cup of Kuju - this week!

It’s on us. :)

UPDATE: Thank you for your interest in our Send a Cup program! We've hit our 100 submission limit. To get in early next time and for exclusive discounts and promotions, sign up for our mailing list below!

9.29.2018 - Today is National Coffee Day and to celebrate, we’re here to help you surprise a deserving friend, family member or colleague with a cup of Kuju Coffee. We’re on a mission to make Quality coffee simple and accessible - wherever you wander. And to help make sure your loved ones have a Quality morning ritual - this round’s on us! Fill out the form below, we’ll package up your note with a Pocket PourOver and send the cheers along. 

**Limited to the first 100 submissions!

The same ease and convenience of the Pocket PourOver with single origin beans artfully sourced from three of the world’s most celebrated coffee locales. 

Why is it that our coffee routine at home is one of our most cherished, protected morning rituals but when we’re away from home, we quickly lower our standards as we accept lower quality, “I guess this will do” options? Whether it’s in a hotel room, an airport or a campsite, we’ve all been there.

I think a lot of marketing out there attempts to justify the existence of a product that quite frankly just doesn't really need to exist. I'm not going to go into specifics but I think we can all remember a time learning of a product and just wondering, "What is this for?".  And so I just want to keep this straightforward in explaining why we created the 5-pack.  

The Travel 5-Pack was created because so many people had requests for a larger "bag" of Pocket PourOvers that they could bring with them any time they wanted quality coffee on-the-go.  Whether it was to a hotel room for a few days or a weekend camping trip, having 5 in an easy-to-carry bag just simplified the whole experience. 

The second piece was for people who have never experienced brewing a Pocket PourOver, the larger format just makes it easier to read and follow the directions, thereby assuring more people that they will get the incredibly flavorful cup of Kuju Coffee that is promised.

And my personal reason is actually because we think it looks beautiful. As entrepreneurs, we believe extending our work to pursue our mission of helping people reclaim their moments of rejuvenation is holistic - it happens in all parts of the business - not just supply chain and the actual coffee experience, but even in packaging design. The hope here is that the visual look of the Travel 5-Pack exudes a sense of rejuvenation whether you use it in your home kitchen, office or monthly travels.

So the next time you're brewing some coffee, grab your Pocket PourOver Travel 5-Pack and share the love!  

Here's to Quality,

Jeff
CEO / Cofounder
Kuju Coffee

Kuju is a coffee company. And naturally, when we first started, the biggest question we faced was, “What coffee should we sell?”

To some, this may seem like a simply question, but when you live in San Francisco — arguably one of the specialty coffee meccas of the world — picking your coffee is no easy task.

It was so difficult for us to make this decision that we simply delayed the decision and focused on other parts of building a company instead. I think Justin and I in some ways were hoping for the other person to make some headway. Overtime, neither of us did.

So what pushed us to make the final decision?

Well, at the end of the day I recall sitting in a church service and just thinking about all things Kuju. What are we really trying to achieve? What do we want to stand for? What do we want our coffee to taste like? How should it be roasted or brewed?

And it was in a split second moment that I remembered meeting a man named Paul who was sourcing coffee from a farm in Thailand. And what was unique about this farm was it employed former sex trafficked victims.

This struck a chord in me because my job before Kuju was selling fair-trade greeting cards, handcrafted by women who had escaped sex trafficking in the Philippines.

In that moment I decided for us that we would source from that farm with Paul’s help, not for any other reason than knowing deep in my gut that it was the right thing to do.

Amazingly, what has ended up providing Kuju with our unique and recognizable flavor is the coffee from this very farm.

I share this story because so many decisions we as a society make are often times based on the outcome we want to achieve. This makes perfect sense, but I do think sometimes it’s worth making decisions based on doing what we think is morally right, even at the risk of the most optimized outcome.

I believe that because of this decision, we brewed into Kuju Coffee a deeper, more caring soul from the very beginning and it’s something I hope we cultivate as we grow.

Here’s to Quality,
Jeff
CEO & Eagle Scout, Kuju Coffee