The Hallo Coffee Truck sits overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, giving your coffee the extra kick you didn’t know it needed. And you know it’s good when the town locals become your regulars.
We wanted to find out more about this small business on wheels, so we went to visit Hallo Coffee and chatted with W.P for a while. Here’s what he had to say.
Let’s start off easy…how many cups of coffee do you drink a day?
One! A half even. I used to overdo it. I’ve been shaking quite a few times. Now it’s just tasting the coffee through the day – I’ll never finish my whole cup!
I did a coffee course in Johannesburg through Shaker [Bar and Barista School]. I mainly learned about the knowledge of the machines and the history of coffee. Learning how to make a perfect shot is all just practical work. 50 000 coffees later, I think I know what I’m doing.
Tell us, what do you do?
I sell coffee, make treats and make people happy. I do it because I’m addicted to trying to be perfect and making my coffee as perfect as it can be. It brings me joy to see someone enjoy something I can make for them. If I can give someone something that makes them happy, it makes me happy.
Where does that passion come from?
That passion comes mainly from working in the kitchen a lot with my mother. It’s just the enjoyment of making something good for someone else, and then also just trying to be consistent in making something perfect. Trying to get the perfect shot and the perfect gram is quite a thing for me.
What challenges have you faced?
One of the few challenges I’ve faced while setting up was getting the location and not having a place to stand for a long time. I tried everything around – municipality grounds, private grounds, trying to get onto the beaches - eventually, nothing worked out for me.
But, as life happens, it just opened up. A friend of mine invited me in to tell me, “Listen, if you ever struggle with anything, you can just stand [on my property]”.
So, I came here, and it started blooming from the second I did.
What does “Together We Rise” mean to you?
Nothing would have been possible without all the people I’ve met along my journey. From the start, my father and mother helped me along the way.
My locals come in every day; they help me to be where I am and build what I have. If I started and had no customers, I would not be where I am now.
I quickly realised doing everything on my own wasn’t going to work. I ended up getting people all around the community to help me with making muffins, doing kombucha, and getting juices in. All of it comes together where one small business helps us all rise together by helping each other. I couldn’t have done it without them.
How has iKhokha helped you grow your business?
iKhokha helped me quite a lot firstly by helping to keep track of every single transaction coming in. They helped me with my point of sales to make everything much easier. iKhokha has improved my ability to keep track of everything: I can see when my high or low tide is when it comes to sales.
I also got to a point where I was offered an iK Cash Advance, which I could use to borrow money and do more with my business to grow further. I’ve started to build a deck where [before], I didn’t have the money at all to do stuff like that.
The deck will be there for more space but also for yoga sessions in the mornings or afternoons. It will have levels all the way down to be like an open theatre, where the band can one day sit down and perform up to us, and we can overlook them and the ocean. So that’s going to be gnarly.
What has been your best business move so far?
Moving here to Wilderness was definitely the best choice I ever made in my life. It’s paradise every day. You get four seasons in a day: rain, sun, and wind. After work, you can go and play volleyball, surf, climb a mountain, go into rivers, and hike in the bushes. It was a life-changing event for me, moving here and especially starting my business surrounded by a view like this.
Any advice for somebody wanting to start a business?
Just keep on going. Do what you want to do.
I told myself, “I have a dream and won’t ever let it go.” Telling yourself the thing over and over every day and keeping your mind on it makes you realise and actually live what you want to do and want to dream.
You’re going to go into dull moments and deep holes where you don’t know what you’re doing or what’s going to happen next, but it’s through those times that you grow and learn how to face bigger stuff that comes along the way.
What is the future of Hallo Coffee?
Yus, dis ‘n gevaarlike vra daai. Eventually, I’m going to do a container, move the trailer to events and then travel with the trailer around South Africa, getting to know people and getting people to know Hallo Coffee. I’ll come back and do about ten caddies that I can convert into a coffee machine with a small kitchen. I’ll place them in the towns all around me, and then buy some property and have my main roastery there and a small cocktail bar in the back. Then hopefully franchise it, send it overseas and make it big.
If you’re ever travelling along the Garden Route, include Hallo Coffee (Remskoen st 6538 Wilderness, South Africa) in your road trip itinerary. You’ll be greeted by freshly ground goodness, sincere service and a remarkable view.
If you’re into cute dog pics and barista skills, show them some love on their socials:
Facebook: Hallo Coffee
Instagram: @Hallocoffee.sa
