Starting a business from a dream of Vietnamese coffee.

In recent years, the wave of Vietnamese coffee startups in the US has contributed to changing the demand for high-quality coffee in this market of over 340 million people.

Among brands owned by people of Vietnamese origin, Fat Milk stands out with its youthful, bold yet flavorful coffee served in a modern bar-style setting, featuring traditional paper filter coffee.

Time Out magazine describes how it takes about 5 minutes for coffee to drip from a Vietnamese filter, a traditional brewing device. After this wait, diners can enjoy a delicious, smooth, and creamy cup of Robusta coffee. Fat Milk collaborates with local farmers in Vietnam to inspect and source the highest quality Robusta coffee beans. Only a select few roasters specializing in Robusta coffee beans transform the slow-drip coffee filter into a living art form.

Fat Milk is a brand founded by Lan Ho, a 35-year-old Vietnamese-American woman with a PhD in pharmacy from the United States. Sharing her thoughts on Fat Milk, CEO Lan Ho said: “Fat Milk doesn’t just sell coffee; it sells an experience – a rich, flavorful cup of Robusta coffee brewed using a Vietnamese filter, along with the dream of bringing Vietnamese coffee to the world .”

Lan Ho participated in the reality TV show Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars.

Lan Ho's passion for Vietnamese coffee led her down a new path despite having a stable job. Born in Oakland, California, and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, after graduating from Lindenwood University, she earned a master's degree in finance from Harvard University and a doctorate in pharmacy from St. Louis School of Medicine. Lan Ho previously worked as a pharmacist for the Walgreens pharmacy chain, earning $120,000 per year. During her college years, she blogged, started a fashion business, and tried various other ventures. But ultimately, she realized that the beverage she was most attached to was coffee, and her passion for exploring the boundless creativity in the coffee industry spurred her to embark on a new journey.

In 2019, Lan Ho gradually built Fat Milk and registered the brand name. A year later, she left Walgreens and took a temporary remote job at a healthcare company so she could gradually build her coffee company using her savings, loans from family, and bank loans. At that time, the company mainly sold coffee beans online and accompanying products such as coffee filters and cups, promoting the origin of the ingredients as well as the distinctive Vietnamese style of brewing filter coffee and iced milk coffee.

In 2022, a turning point came for Fat Milk when Lan Ho participated for the first time in the American reality TV competition show Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars. As the youngest contestant in the final round, and also the youngest business, Lan Ho confidently seized the opportunity to present Fat Milk to the famous entrepreneur and chef Gordon Ramsay on American television.

Although she didn't win, the nationwide television attention for Lan Ho's Fat Milk brand paved the way for her to open her first coffee shop. Fat Milk transformed from an online sales company to a physical store.

The first Fat Mill coffee shop in Chicago opened in February 2024, selling both pre-packaged products and freshly brewed coffee. Fat Mill's motto is to roast and supply only 100% Vietnamese Robusta coffee beans. Regarding Lan Ho's shop, the Chicago Book Club noted that Fat Mill not only offers authentic coffee but also celebrates the vibrant energy, rich flavor, and cultural pride inherent in the product, while showcasing the vitality and confidence of its immigrant heritage.

Lan Ho plans to open her second store in Naperville, Illinois in 2026. The third location, her first outside of Illinois, is currently under development. Lan Ho shared that one of the biggest lessons she learned on her coffee entrepreneurial journey was to assert herself through action and dare to turn bold ideas into reality.

THANH HANG

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/khoi-nghiep-tu-uoc-mo-ca-phe-viet-post818786.html