Ka Jêmima, 29 years old, graduated with a degree in accounting from the College of Foreign Trade Economics and had a stable office job in the city for a period of time. After the Covid-19 pandemic, she decided to leave the city and return to Bao Thuan commune, Lam Dong province.
During this period, she taught Vietnamese to foreigners and worked as an interpreter to make ends meet, while persistently researching and learning about coffee roasting and processing. This combination of earning a living and learning the trade laid the foundation for a crucial turning point.
In 2023, the Pràn-pa brand was officially launched, carrying with it the dream of starting a business from the red basalt soil, the Robusta coffee plantations, and the identity of her ethnic group. The name Pràn-pa in the K'ho language means "new life." For Ka Jêmima, that's the spirit she wants to convey: that each cup of coffee not only helps you stay alert but also transmits positive energy, inspires confidence, and fosters connection.
What makes Pràn-pa unique is the way Ka Jêmima connects coffee beans with K'ho culture. While traditionally, the K'ho people welcome guests with rice wine as a symbol of hospitality, her family continues this spirit with a cup of coffee they grow and roast themselves. Each cup of coffee is more than just a beverage; it opens up a connection, carrying within it the story of the mountains, the earth, and human connection. "I want that when sipping a cup of Pràn-pa coffee, the drinker not only feels the pure flavor but also sees the identity of our homeland within it," Ka Jêmima shared.
Starting on a small scale, Pràn-pa only roasts less than 20 kg of coffee per month. But this very modesty allows Ka Jêmima to focus on every detail. From harvesting, she only selects ripe red cherries, discarding defective beans, drying them naturally for 10-20 days, then storing the green beans for 1-3 months to stabilize the flavor. Each roasting batch usually takes about 35 minutes. Thanks to this meticulousness, the percentage of defective beans is only 5-7%. The final product is pure roasted coffee, without flavorings or additives, preserving its original, rustic flavor and being safe for health.
For Ms. Ka Jêmima, entrepreneurship is not just about building a personal brand, but also about contributing to improving the lives of the community. Each harvest season, Pràn-pa provides seasonal employment for 5-7 workers, all of whom are local K'ho people. In addition, she proactively buys coffee beans from the villagers at a price 20,000 VND/kg higher than the market price, helping them earn extra income instead of just selling raw beans at unstable prices. “I hope that when the quality of our local coffee beans is elevated, the lives of the K'ho ethnic minority farmers will gradually improve and become more prosperous every day,” Ms. Ka Jêmima said.
Despite being in its early stages, Pràn-pa has already attracted international attention, with its first regular customers being Vietnamese expats and foreigners. Based on this positive feedback, Ms. Ka Jêmima continued to build the brand domestically, while also nurturing the ambition to bring her hometown coffee to countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, and the United States – markets that value quality and cherish the cultural story associated with the product.
Ms. Ka Jêmima also acknowledges that her entrepreneurial journey was not easy, but was built step by step through research and experience. Each harvest season, each roasting and grinding trial brought valuable lessons to perfect the product. For her, the most important thing for young people from ethnic minority communities to succeed in starting a business is perseverance and maintaining a sincere passion for the craft, because only when done properly will the coffee bean bring lasting value.
Source: https://baolamdong.vn/giu-hon-k-ho-trong-tung-giot-ca-phe-390996.html
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