Share your coffee stories with us by writing to info@comunicaffe.com.
MILAN – Anyone who says that specialty coffee is a niche market may change their mind when faced with a number of business cases that work on paper: in addition to Italy’s Ditta Artigianale, Cafezal and Bugan Coffee Lab, there are specialty coffee shops offering these products all over the world.
And they are thriving. One example that does not come from mainstream Australia or the UK is The Miners Coffee, a shop that sells speciality coffee and has become a chain, even before it was a micro roastery.
The Miners: the first coffee shop in 2019
From there, the sky seems to be the limit. From Slavikova in Prague, founded by Egor Kolpakov and Oldrich Valta, The Miners has expanded to Barcelona, the Czech Republic, Poland and Austria.
And growth continues with the opening of 20 new locations in 2025. Soon, The Miners will also be in Germany, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Hungary and Malta.
Only specialty coffee? No: The Miners has developed a pastry system that combines good food with good coffee, every day. High-quality equipment (including La Marzocco and Slayer) and even a single-serve option, with compostable capsules compatible with the Nespresso system, to cater to coffee lovers – the most popular and democratic specialty coffee.
The Miners, numbers at hand
Clearly stated on the website itself, it tells a story characterised by facts: 21
coffee shops in Europe, 2,258 banknotes per day, €526,000 Revenue in April 2024, 20
coffee shops in Europe, 100,000 guests in 2023, €6.5 million turnover in 2024, 18 investors.
A commitment to quality that starts upstream, with the selection of beans from all over the world: The Miners are roasters who have been able to create their own distribution network, including owned and franchised premises (€30,000 Franchise fee
5% Royalty, 2% Marketing, 3-5 years Amortisation period), becoming one of the most important specialty coffee businesses in Prague.
And of course, it doesn’t stop at service and product delivery, but also includes training and comprehensive support for various formats, including bakeries, roasteries and coffee shops.
There is a way to become a sustainable company while dealing in specialty coffee, and not necessarily by starting up in places where this drink is already completely accepted. The Miners describe a business model that can be replicated and sustained without compromising on the quality of the coffee in the cup – although, of course, the best way to empirically assess the quality of the coffee is to go and taste it.
Of course, having a roastery behind you is key to covering costs, along with the decision to continue with franchising and certainly not neglecting the food offering.
In Italy, this could be something to consider, naturally without slavishly copying the concept, but adapting it to local habits and tastes.
Thant the floor is given directly to the founder, Egor Kolpakov.
What is the price situation: is it a problem for consumers to pay more?
“When we started in Prague, the specialty market was still very young. Specialty coffee was something new, and only a handful of cafés were introducing it to the wider public. Many people still associated coffee mostly with traditional espresso or instant coffee, and it took time to show that specialty coffee means transparency, quality, and a completely new experience.
Today, the situation is very different. The community has grown, consumers are more educated, and the demand for quality is much higher. People in Prague are curious, open to trying new origins, new processing methods, and even new brewing techniques. In a way, specialty coffee has become part of the city’s identity.”
How important is having your own roastery and bakery to make your specialty-based business sustainable?
“Having our own roastery is absolutely essential. It gives us full control over quality from start to finish, allows us to innovate, and helps us stay sustainable in the long term. With roasting, being independent means consistency, freshness, and freedom to shape our own profiles.
When it comes to the bakery, we don’t consider ourselves the biggest experts in that field. With the right volumes, it’s possible to achieve very good conditions from external suppliers. In fact, economies of scale are the most important factor in running a truly sustainable business — whether you produce in-house or collaborate with trusted partners.”
The franchise formula: why did you decide to adopt it and how does it work?
“We still open our own stores, but in order to reach a broader audience and build The Miners into the brand we envision, we had to adopt a franchise model. Franchising allows us to stay fast, lean, and connected to customers. Running a large number of own stores across multiple countries inevitably turns a company into a corporate machine. That’s exactly what we want to avoid.
I personally thrive in fast-moving, independent environments — the corporate world always felt too slow, too political, and too far from the actual product. With franchising, we can grow internationally at our own pace while keeping a tight, effective HQ team (we call it the SWAT team) and still deliver high standards across locations.
If we carefully choose and train our franchise partners, they run their own businesses with our support. The result? It doesn’t feel like a corporate chain — it feels like a neighborhood venue with just the right amount of professionalism.”
