10 May 2023
As Old Boys enter the Maritzburg College gates for the Reunion Weekend, from 11 to 13 May, they’ll be greeted by a new addition to the school, on the right-hand side: Coffeebox, which opened its doors on Wednesday, 10 May, is an inviting venue for some of the best coffee to be found anywhere, and tasty treats, too.
It was three years in the making and began with discussions between College’s Business Manager Kevin Smith and Con Malherbe, the owner of Coffeeberry and Coffeebox. It sounds like a good idea. Simple, though? Not quite…
Challenges
As Mark Malherbe, Con’s son, and a Maritzburg College Old Boy, explained to Pinnacle Schools: “Coffee shops inside school grounds are all good and well, but then, during school holidays, you have no trade. Sales dry up and it is not sustainable. We told Kevin and College that we were interested, provided it was accessible to the general public. That created a stumbling block, as well, from a security perspective.”
However, with both parties determined to find a way to make it work, plans were finally drawn up and a deal was done.
The inviting Coffeebox premises were constructed to match the aesthetic of the school. Mark explained: “Our current stores have the container look. Maritzburg College’s aesthetic is the red brick and mortar. After much back-and-forth, we came up with what you see today. We’re thrilled with it. It matches the rest of the school.”
Wonderful ambience
It not only matches the aesthetic of the school, it enhances it. The spacious feel of the premises, the open deck and a beautiful tree that stands in the middle of it make for a wonderful ambience. The designers hit the ball out of the park.
Down the line, Coffeeberry will also provide mobile units for sporting events, as well on Princess Margaret Drive, on the opposite side of the school, where some of the boys are dropped off and collected by their parents.
The forecast for the Reunion is cold and rainy for the Saturday, when Maritzburg College and Westville Boys’ High do battle in hockey and rugby. Coffeebox is expecting to be very busy.
Origins
First, there was Coffeeberry, with the original shop opening in the Cascades Mall. Then, three-and-a-half years ago, the first Coffeebox opened in Athlone. Covid-19 forced its temporary closure, but when it was allowed to re-open there was an unexpected boost to the business, Mark said: “People were very keen on the drive-thru idea – contactless, not having to come into the store. That exposed a lot of people to our drive-thru, who maybe hadn’t tried it yet. It sent our Athlone store into another dimension.”
Finding the right sites for Coffeebox is a challenging endeavour, he explained: “We have explored maybe 50 to 100 sites for the drive-thru, all over KZN, parts of Gauteng, but it is an incredibly difficult site to get right. You need good road frontage. You need enough space to have a drive-thru road. Then, you get the drive-thru road, but you need enough stacking space for cars that are queueing, without impeding the main road. We found many good locations, but the drive-thru couldn’t be accommodated.
“That’s our key differentiator, our drive-thru system. We invest a lot of time and money into it, and making sure that people can get coffee quickly.”
Working hand-in-hand
The second Coffeeberry restaurant was opened in Hilton in March 2022. That’s where the food for the Coffeebox outlets – wraps, sandwiches, muffins and croissants – is produced. Coffeeberry and Coffeebox work hand-in-hand, Mark said.
His dad, Con, made a success of the original business because of a quality product and good service. And an investment into the staff has been another crucial differentiator, Mark added.
“The success of our expansion and our day-to-day business has happened because of a good team of people. We have a unique relationship with our staff, in particular. We really empower them. We have some unbelievable managers across our stores, down to our waitrons, our baristas, our scullery guys, our kitchen staff. Everyone plays a vital role, and we empower everyone as much as possible.
Community support
Coffeeberry and Coffeebox have also worked hard to be contributors to their communities. An important part of this involves regularly donating to charities.
Coffeeberry supports Rejuvenate SA – https://rejuvenatesa.com/ – which is dedicated to getting people mobile, Mark said. “People that have had car accidents, people that are born with developmental issues. The most common work that they do is getting people prosthetic legs who couldn’t afford them, getting people wheelchairs, who don’t have the means, getting people moving, getting them to physios, that type of thing.
“On the Coffeebox front, our chosen charity is Free Me Wildlife – https://freemewildlife.org/. They’re based in Howick. They’re a rehabilitation centre for wildlife and they do a phenomenal job. Like so many non-profit organisations, they struggle for funding. We’re very pleased to be involved with them.
“There are always smaller projects going on. What comes to mind at Athlone is Jan Hankey, a local resident, who started an initiative with a lot of the homeless guys, who were begging at the traffic lights.
“She formalised them into a team of cleaners, the main guy being Tom, and they have been taking on the work that the municipality should be doing. People like Jan are wonderful individuals. We have, in turn, pumped money into that as regularly as possible, and into other charities like that. That’s big for us. It’s thanks to people supporting us that we are able to do that.
Learn more about Jan Hankey and the Keep Pietermaritzburg Clean Association: https://www.facebook.com/101070842600211/posts/kpca-keep-pietermaritzburg-clean-association-was-initially-established-in-1992-t/118020950905200/
Supporting local businesses
Building Coffeebox on the Maritzburg College grounds, and keeping to the aesthetic of the school, presented many challenges, but it also presented College and the Malherbe family with an opportunity to contribute to the local economy, which is clearly something that pleased them greatly.
Mark elaborated: “What gives me a real kick when expanding these businesses around the Midlands is all the different contractors that get work from a contract like this – plumbers, electricians, builders, the decking companies, equipment guys. We have kept it local. It’s a big investment back into the community. That excites me a lot.
Good, sustainable jobs
“The employment side of it is huge. Across our four stores, we now have just over 100 employees. At a time when our employment rate in South Africa is sitting just below 40 percent, it means a lot to us if we can provide some good, sustainable jobs to 100 different South Africans.
The coffee for the business also has a local source, Manna Roastery – https://mannaroastery.com/ – in Hilton. “They’re local guys, and they are on hand to assist with technical issues or machine installations. It is a huge comfort having them close by,” Mark said.
Proudly looking over the latest addition to his coffee-based businesses, Con Malherbe said: “Some of the coffee holdings have aligned themselves to, for example, Caltex garages. This, Coffeebox, has the potential to align itself with schools. There are schools in the bigger centres that have this same concept, where they have visibility and street frontage..and we can have the same model.”
No doubt, the Maritzburg College Old Boys will give Coffeebox their seal of approval on the Reunion weekend.
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