Gabriel Velez.
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Management · Operations · People

Turning a coffee farm around takes business judgment

Connecting productivity and direct sales with better working conditions.

CASE 03From the roots.

Finances, crops, brand and people

THE FARM IN CONTEXT

From the land to the decisions.

The crop, infrastructure and people are part of the same transformation story.

Aerial view of the coffee farm and surrounding mountains
The farm and its surroundings.
Coffee plants on a hillside of the farm
Coffee plants on the hillside.
Coffee processing equipment and space at the farm
Infrastructure for processing the coffee.
CHANGES WE CAN SEE

An operation beginning to respond.

Work on finances, crops, infrastructure and the brand is showing tangible signs. Recovering the investment remains a projection.

PRODUCTIONMore and better coffee

Production and product quality have improved.

SALESMore direct sales

Sales without intermediaries are growing, supported by the farm’s own brand identity.

TEAMBetter conditions

We improved pay, meals and housing, and introduced paid days off.

Understand the business

When I took over the farm’s administration, I started by understanding the causes of its situation, its debts and the changes needed to make it profitable.

Work on several fronts

I worked on restoring financial health, renewing crops and infrastructure, and developing a brand identity to increase direct sales.

Changes we are seeing

We are seeing increased production, improved product quality and growth in sales without intermediaries. Based on the current trajectory, I expect to recover the investment earlier than initially estimated.

The team is part of the brand

We also improved pay, meals and housing. We introduced paid days off, direct two-way communication and a stronger sense of belonging to the brand.

THE KEY DECISION

Improve productivity, commercialization and conditions for the people who make the operation possible.

RESULT / PROGRESS

Observed improvements in production, quality and direct sales. Earlier investment recovery remains a projection.

THE NEXT CONVERSATION

What challenge
are you working on?

If your team needs to understand a problem, weigh alternatives or turn an initiative into reality, I’d like to hear the context.