Kigali · Rwanda
Bourbon Coffee
Bourbon Coffee roasts in Kigali, Kigali City.
Since 2007 · Arthur Karuletwa, Emmanuel Murekezi
Overview
Bourbon Coffee opened its first store at Kigali's Union Trade Centre on 2 March 2007 — the day President Kagame inaugurated UTC and the City Market — founded by Rwandan-Americans Arthur Karuletwa and Emmanuel Murekezi after Karuletwa returned from California-then-Seattle (where he met his wife and 'his other love, coffee') to consult for OCIR-Café and build a retail brand for Rwanda's post-genocide coffee renewal. It is widely cited as Rwanda's first specialty coffee shop and the first African retail coffee brand to expand to the United States; the name nods to the Red Bourbon arabica that accounts for ~95% of Rwandan coffee.
Known for
- Rwanda's first specialty coffee shop
- First African retail coffee brand in the United States
- Direct trade with mixed Hutu-Tutsi cooperatives as reconciliation work
- Crop-to-cup philosophy + 25%+ above Fair Trade pricing
- Tristar Investments backing
Why it matters
Bourbon was the platform Rwanda used to re-brand its coffee abroad after 1994 — the first specialty cafe chain on Rwandan soil, the first African specialty retailer to land in the U.S., and a founding example of how producer-country brands can reach Western consumers directly.
Production
- roastery location
- Roasting partners in Rwanda and the U.S.
Café
Union Trade Centre, Kigali (original flagship)
Recognitions
- First specialty coffee shop in Rwanda
- First African retail coffee brand in the United States