Largest UK Coffee Week Kicks Off With Support From Thousands Of Coffee Shops Across The Country
New campaign ‘My Cup Matters’ will show how shops and coffee lovers can make a real difference with their daily cup of coffee
Hurrah! UK Coffee Week is returning to coffee shops, retailers and foodservice outlets across the country from 29 April – 5 May 2019, raising money for Project Waterfall whilst celebrating and championing the country’s thriving coffee scene. Set to be the largest yet, the celebration has so far changed over 40,000 lives and raised almost £1 million for Project Waterfall – an initiative delivering clean water, sanitation and education to coffee growing communities.
Throughout the week, thousands of coffee outlets of all shapes and sizes will be fundraising by donating money from every cup of coffee they serve, hosting events such as latte art throw-downs, open mics and barista head-to-heads, or even organising town coffee crawls. With the exposure generated from taking part and hosting events, previous participants have reported significant spikes in footfall.
Their efforts will give coffee lovers across the UK the chance to support Project Waterfall simply by enjoying their daily cup of joe – a message that will be reinforced through a new campaign entitled ‘My Cup Matters’. The campaign will highlight why Project Waterfall is so important, and show the positive impact it’s having on lives, through a series of events, workshops and installations.
The mechanic for raising money is entirely open to each business, but what really matters is having engaged businesses all over the country so wherever people are based they can visit their local store or go online to take part. On top of this, anyone can donate £3 (the cost of a cup of coffee) to Project Waterfall by texting ‘UKCW19 £3’ to 70070 or help spread the word by sharing their coffee images from the week using #MyCupMatters. How brilliant!
What’s more, industry leaders have already signed up to take part in UK Coffee Week. Both Caffé Nero, as part of a collaboration between Project Waterfall and the Nero Foundation, and Costa Coffee, in partnership with Costa Foundation, will be continuing their long-standing support.
Other participants include Muffin Break, Cafe2U, Esquires, Insomnia Coffee, Ground Espresso Bars, Crepe Affaire, SOHO Coffee, Second Cup, Abokado, FCB Coffee, and the campaign is also on the road to having 1,000 independent coffee outlets taking part from across the UK.
In 2018, over £245,000 was raised during UK Coffee Week and as a result, donations have been used to fund the start of Project Waterfall’s 4-year programme in the rural Jabi Tehnan district of Ethiopia, in partnership with WaterAid UK. This year hopes to top that, with 100% of proceeds supporting this ongoing project, which will bring clean drinking water and sanitation to over 10,000 people in the region.
Jeffrey Young, Founder of UK Coffee Week, commented: “UK Coffee Week is all about the celebration of coffee and uniting the industry with its customers to raise valuable funds for the millions of people in coffee growing regions who rely on coffee to fund their livelihoods. We truly believe that every cup of coffee makes a difference, and everybody can make their cup matter this UK Coffee Week.”
For more information, and to register to participate, please visit www.ukcoffeeweek.com or get involved in the conversation using #UKCOFFEEWEEK.