Roasters: From a Meeting in a Business Club to a Joint Coffee Business in Dubai

This story sheds light on how you can make use of networking to start a business in any—even the most unusual—conditions.

Two Ukrainian businessmen Ivan Kroshnyi and Kostiantyn Harbuz opened a unique coffee villa Roasters in Dubai, where they serve top-quality hand-brewed coffee and signature coffee cocktails by a famous barista.

Website: https://ivankroshnyi.com/en/

Read on to learn more about how the coffee house owned by foreign businessmen gained popularity over the first months after it opened and why entrepreneurs opted for this business.

According to a project’s investor Ivan Kroshnyi, the idea of ​​setting up a coffee villa was born in early summer in a business club after a meeting with an entrepreneur Kostiantyn Harbuz. This once again proves the value of networking. A seemingly ordinary encounter gave an impetus to a partnership.

Backed by his experience of running a coffee company in the UAE, Kostiantyn Harbuz offered a good idea, a well-developed business plan, global coffee analytics, and Dubai market analysis. Ivan Kroshnyi praised this ambitious project and made a quick decision to become a partner and investor. In September, they managed to start the project and opened the first coffee house.

“Dubai is a dynamic city. Here you can’t negotiate for months on end. You have to make decisions quickly. So, my partner and I agreed on the coffee house project in Dubai within five days: from the moment I found out about it to the moment we shook hands and started investing. So far, this is the fastest investment decision in my life,” Ivan Kroshnyi said.

The snow-white coffee villa is situated on Wasl Road, Jumeirah. This is the largest coffee villa in the residential strip, with a total area of 750 square meters. It offers 125 seats and loads of large open spaces not overfilled with tables. Every detail is there to make sure that guests feel comfortable and enjoy a few free meters around. The partners wanted their guests to have a place to socialize where no one disturbs them. To do so, they organized a VIP room in the villa where you can spend time alone or hold various events. Roasters’s highlight is a huge roof with a magnificent panoramic view of Dubai and the Burj Khalifa.

The cozy coffee house serves freshly roasted top-quality specialty coffee made from premium 100% Arabica beans with a slightly sour taste, lots of desserts, and a signature coffee menu. Also, people visit this coffee house to enjoy coffee cocktails by a famous barista, have a delicious breakfast or lunch, and enjoy a cup of coffee. According to Ivan Kroshnyi, the villa is equipped with a roasting machine used to process green beans right before the guests. This coffee house is obviously not the first one to roast beans; Roasters compares favorably with others by offering lots of coffee options.

Delicious coffee, a perfect location, a gorgeous panoramic view, and good design are the advantages that help Roasters stand out amongst its peers and attract many guests. The success is when all seats are taken. In the evenings, you even have to stand in line to walk in. The coffee house became a hot spot in just a month.

Ivan Kroshnyi is sure this project is successful thanks to their partnership, “I try to do all of my businesses in partnership with like-minded people. Besides any success, partnerships enable companies to grow quickly and gain new skills. Partnerships help you move forward at a faster pace compared to unilateral efforts. I believe that a successful partnership is already half the battle.” On his Instagram account, Ivan Kroshnyi shares his experience of building businesses, proper networking, and partnerships.