Maryam Rezaei
Chrissoula Manolakaki
Panos Chreppas
Stamatis Tsagias
Asimeni TountaYiannis Taloumis
Trying to meet with Yiannis Taloumis and hearing his story wasn’t the easiest task… not because he didn’t wish to meet with me, but because he is always on the move. On the move in exploring lands for quality and taste…! Usually big business men and company owners who have achieved their goals and are “already living their dream” besides a dose of “arrogance” they kinda stop searching and delivering their best to “customers”! But also, they “brag” about who they are and what they have done… so you can understand my surprise when I asked him to tell me from the start his story, and his answer without ANY exaggeration could fit in two lines!!! And making his huge success today sound so incredibly easy and simple, when what Yiannis Taloumis has achieved, is extremely difficult and remarkable!
Yiannis Taloumis was born in a “coffee” family… And all he has ever done was around coffee. Again, it’s very rare to find someone who has so much passion for what he does after so many years and in the same company! But Yiannis didn’t just follow his family footsteps, but he made his own path; challenging the status quo of the coffee industry by teaching clients and the public what coffee means and how to truly taste it with our senses and not drinking it because we need it!
In 1989, Yiannis established his coffee company in Greece, Taf coffee. Selling coffee though wasn’t good enough for him… As he wanted to make a difference. It wasn’t enough to just sell coffee beans in a package, but he wanted to create an end to end clear and open communication with clients and the people drinking his coffee. So, he decided to find the best coffee bean producers all around the world and give them a voice; To make coffee with heritage and history! But also, giving us another reason to drink coffee besides caffeine… to be able to smell and taste the difference among blends. By educating his clients and the market he has transforming coffee from a necessity into a “ritual”… Giving us the power and a reason to choose the coffee blend that best suits us! Now he has the “coffee tasters” job besides running the company, as he is lucky enough to travel to all the beautiful and authentic lands tasting what he loves the most but also connecting with beautiful “simple” people who love what they do…cultivating their lands.
It is beautiful and rare to find people who have all the reasons to be loud and self-centered due to their journey of success, yet so kind and humble… with impeccable manners! Yiannis Taloumis, may not have opened his cards and his heart with me, but somethings are beyond words…like his genuine laugh and smile and his super “Simple” way of going about his life without any kind of showing off nor bragging!
I asked him how it was to challenge the market and follow his dream…
It's always difficult to put a new idea on the table, and there will always be many who will deny or judge you… All you need to do is to have your goal and values clear in your head and move forward…
http://www.cafetaf.gr
