Change Please Coffee

Charlotte, NC

Address
932 Seigle Ave, Charlotte, NC, 28205
Website
changeplease-us.org

About Change Please Coffee

Change Please Coffee is the U.S. arm of a social enterprise founded in the United Kingdom in 2015 with a mission to fight homelessness through coffee. The organization expanded to the United States in late 2021 and opened its first American training academy and café in Charlotte in early 2023, before extending its impact work to New York City and Denver in early 2024. The company's core model directs 100% of profits from its wholesale and retail coffee sales toward barista training and hospitality-focused career development for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. As founder Cemal Ezel puts it, "If we can just get a small proportion of coffee drinkers to simply change where they buy their coffee, we could really change the world." That philosophy underlies the company's approach to early intervention, aiming to build long-term stability through job skills rather than short-term aid alone. Change Please's leadership includes a board comprising Alison Egan, Cemal Muharrem Ezel, Nick Fox, and Tom Finke, with Ryan McMillan serving as Commercial, Impact and Operations Director and Andy Magel as Director of Impact overseeing the day-to-day training and impact programs across its U.S. markets. The brand's ethically-sourced, environmentally conscious coffee has earned significant industry recognition, including eight Great Taste Awards, the Most Ethical Initiative Award in 2022, the UK Social Enterprise Winner title in 2021, and an International Social Enterprise Award in 2022. In Charlotte, Change Please operates both a training academy and a café, giving the city a firsthand look at the company's blend of specialty coffee and workforce development.

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Change Please Coffee in Charlotte, NC