Prince Kamari was like every other student in school, wondering about the future. However, he had a deep desire to help promote coffee culture in Rwandan communities.
With this zeal, the senior six graduate partnered with a friend, Aidan Miller, to establish a cafe in Musanze dubbed ‘Crema’.
“We decided to start Crema more specifically out of Kigali, mainly because Musanze was still an available market, in addition to being one of the biggest tourist destinations in the country, and to also promote the coffee culture within the country,” 24-year-old Kamari says.
Kamari (on the cover) and Aidan Miller, a partner in Crema Cafe Musanze. Photos/Courtesy
He also believed that as essential as school is, it’s not always the only road to success. He realized that many young people don’t know who they are or what career or education path they want to pursue after high school.
Kamari wanted to make a difference and do something different after highschool. Kamari met his business partner in 2017 and they shared the same goal. They decided to put their ideas into practice, and the rest is history.
According to him, his parents gave him one-year after high school to start any business opportunity that he wanted. The business partners got starting capital from a crowd funding platform called ‘indiegogo’ (similar to GoFundMe).
The businessman points out Crema is primarily a specialty coffee shop. It offers a wide range of coffee and non-coffee beverages. The baristas are highly trained.
“We are also known as the only place in Musanze to serve the American style bagel sandwiches, plus other fresh fast-food items for breakfast and lunch such as; breakfast quesadillas and burritos, salad, granola, among others. Our menu is completely vegetarian, except for the options of ham as the only meat item,” he says.
Kamari conducts periodic barista training sessions in order to assist individuals who wish barista skills.
He explained that Musanze has the unique food menu, which attracts tourists. It is also the only place in the area to have an outdoor art gallery as well as an ice cream truck.
The youngster believes that a coffee shop should engage and build relationships with customers while also creating a relaxed and comfortable environment for everyone to connect, professionally and casually.
“It should also be a place where people want to spend a long period of time. He suggests making it as easy as possible for people to work from, hold meetings, or just hang out with their friends.
Kamari highlights that Crema’s mantra is, coffee, community, and creativity as everything they do revolves around the three words, adding that the coffee shop has become more of an experience.
Crema creates a space for people to relax, work, and connect. Crema empowers the community in many ways, including by hiring college students and high school graduates, and providing space for young entrepreneurs who want to show their talents.
The entrepreneur says that he has provided space to a young talented local artist, who has created the first outdoor gallery to which he carries out weekly painting classes to individuals, titled, “Paint and Sip”. And in addition, they also provided space to another young entrepreneur to house the first and only ice cream trailer serving specialty ice cream, named, “Scoops”.
Kamari explains to us that the coffee shop houses a small craft shop (DuHope Shop), which is open to tourists and anyone else who wants souvenirs or gifts.
He has no doubt that coffee shops are the middle ground for people who don’t want to stay home or go to high paced or loud places like bars.
“Although coffee shops are initiated almost everywhere and anyone can put coffee grounds and water together and make some sort of coffee, however, people are not willing to invest in a proper coffee shop,” he says.
Entrepreneur says that not all business people can afford to invest in the proper equipment. They also need to train their staff in coffee and professional training.
For him, first class services, and consistency, are what will create a good name and sustain a coffee shop’s reputation.
“One of the challenges of hiring young people is not having a long-term stable team because with the skills they gain, they tend to pursue other opportunities that are better paying.
“Since my purpose for doing business is not just making lots of money, but also empowering and giving employees opportunities to learn and grow, there are usually some mistakes in the daily operations. So finding the perfect system and balance that does not affect the operations of the business and maintains teaching and empowering the staff is a problem,” he says.
He further notes that any businessman or entrepreneur will tell you that there’s no manual handbook of how to perfectly start and run a business regardless of the level of education. The first thing is to find something you’re passionate about and gifted at, then identify and pursue a business opportunity that is aligned with that passion and then associate yourself with people in that particular field and learn, explore, research and then start.
“That’s what most young people are scared of, to just start. There will never be the perfect timing to start a business and it will be a rollercoaster, which is what business is essentially about,” he says.
He hopes to see Crema grow to be a larger brand with more branches in the country within five years. He is also looking for more impactful and unique opportunities.
For example, encouraging the youth to make the most of the country’s opportunities and potential, while also teaching them valuable lessons and tools he has learned.
His parents have inspired him. They have supported him in his business ventures and continue to support him.
“I am also inspired by our president HE Paul Kagame most especially for his leadership style of accountability, inclusion and love for our country, which is all ultimately to promote and develop our beautiful country,” he says.
He plans to go back to school, even this year. However, he will continue to run the business.
editor@newtimesrwanda.com
Source: rnewtimes
