Uncle Dou, who only knows how to make coffee: he didn't make any money but enjoyed it very much.

Interviewing Uncle Dou in Uncle Dou's Haofang Cafe, not surprisingly, he has the talkative style of Beijingers. As a watcher who adheres to the ideal of coffee, he does not want to "add luster" to his story, and even disdains to decorate himself with words. He will politely admit that he is a little idealistic, but when it comes to his obsession with coffee, his statement is a bit unexpected: "I can't do anything but that."

Uncle Dou's Haofang Cafe has a unique temperament, divided into three areas inside and outside, with a simple and elegant coffee shop and DIY platform on the outside, and a raw bean display area in the middle, similar to a coffee warehouse, inside which lies several coffee roasters that Uncle Dou is proud of. Hao Fang Cafe is actually a coffee roaster, unlike Starbucks or caf é with simple meals, it belongs to the high-end format of the coffee industry, where you can stir-fry beans, drink coffee and receive training. In the words of Uncle Dou, this store is more like his studio.

Now Uncle Dou, who "can do nothing but coffee", worked in the domestic import and export trade for 10 years before he really came into contact with coffee, then settled in Germany for six years, learned and made coffee and then fell in love with it. He went deep into the wonderful world of coffee and enjoyed the comfortable life it brought to him, until he returned to Beijing in 2008 with his father's expectation of a sense of security. He also "moved" the coffee roaster that had worked in Germany to Beijing.

Tie the knot with coffee by accident, and then naturally walk on this road, this entrepreneurial journey has no thrills and surprises, everything seems to be attributed to life's original nature, take advantage of it. "the reason why I chose coffee, there was no childhood dream, and there was basically no concept of coffee at that time," Uncle Dou said. "it just gave me an opportunity to get here. Coffee gave me an opportunity to go deeper, and I also went deep into it. Then I found that I couldn't do anything else, so what should I do? go on.

"Chinese people's main demand for coffee is fragrant and strong."

Uncle Dou hopes to create the concept of "boutique coffee". Relying on the coffee roaster, he wants to convey the idea that coffee is not a drink for everyone to drink while chatting. However, there is no unified definition of "boutique" coffee in the industry, and Uncle Dou has his own understanding: "it is that I stand from your point of view to help you find the coffee you want to drink." In short, it's just two words, delicious. "

Uncle Dou admits that there are many consumers in China who don't particularly care about whether the coffee is good or not. They just want the coffee to give themselves a label, petty bourgeoisie or boutique. But this is not what Uncle Dou wants. with a bit of perfectionism, he makes the coffee he handles taste better. Most of the people who go to and out of the coffee shop are "fans" in their 30s to 40s. Uncle Dou is willing to define them as people who are more appreciative, or at least can drink good or bad.

In his opinion, finding a cup of your own, delicious, personalized coffee is all he does, or at least he has been trying to communicate with consumers with this idea. But the simpler the request, the more elusive it is. However, he feels that there are general rules for even personalized things: "for example, the main demand of the Chinese for coffee is fragrant and strong."

Uncle Dou never orientates his customers, and his statement is very vivid, "bring him in as long as you want coffee." In his belief, no one will refuse a good thing, and when you hold a cup of coffee in your hand, you will wonder if there is anything better. Based on the reality of the coffee promotion period in China, "only three beans can no longer be divided into left and right pots," Uncle Dou said. In fact, this is not completely helpless, in Uncle Dou's heart, his cafe itself does not have a threshold, he is willing to share what he knows about coffee and enjoy it.

Uncle Dou provides two ways for consumers to find good coffee. You can drink good coffee in a fixed, trusting cafe, or you can simply go back and make it yourself. In the bakery, Uncle Dou introduced training, which is not available in foreign shops. Since October 2010, 20,000 students have signed up for the class. In such a training course, it is not about the sophisticated content of coffee, but the most basic knowledge. in Uncle Dou's eyes, this is the most lacking part in China.

Speaking of training Uncle Dou will be very excited, he also makes no secret that the promotion of training courses has made him a star member of each group buying network. Uncle Dou's way of giving a lecture is not to tell you what coffee is so strong, who has drunk it, and so on, but to tell all the real things about coffee itself, such as what kind of taste should be in coffee, where it comes from, and how to find your favorite coffee. Even in the training, we should put aside the labeling things, this is the principle of returning to the truth that Uncle Dou adheres to.

"I didn't make any money, but I enjoyed it."

Uncle Dou defines his current state as "very satisfied", specifically "not making money, but enjoying it very much". He has been making coffee with the mentality of a preacher. "I made a good thing with my heart, gave it to people who don't know it yet, and told them, and then I gave them a chance to taste it so that they could realize its value." Uncle Dou will enjoy the process very much and is willing to suffer for it. This is part of his feeling that his nature cannot change. The root of all this is "I am such a person, and I am willing to live like this."

Do not make a lot of money in the coffee business, but also with the color of idealism, and do happily, Uncle Dou has always been questioned by his father, and people in their 70s never drink coffee. Uncle Dou was shaken by the fact that he couldn't make money making coffee in China, and he thought about changing careers when he first returned home. But in the same sentence, Uncle Dou said he couldn't do anything but coffee. With such a heartfelt monologue, implying the persistence and persistence of the ideal watcher, he plunged in and has been until now.

Because of the installation of roasting equipment, the location of Uncle Dou's coffee roaster is not ideal, and the flow of passengers is also restricted. Although you can sell beans, but the buyer's digestibility of coffee beans is too low, 250 grams can drink for half a year, and some people have not even bought it yet. At first, Uncle Dou felt that as an experienced person, he could always "feel the stone to cross the river so as not to lose his heel". The actual situation is really not very good, basically how much money, spend the same amount of money, feel a little bit of self-amusement.

Uncle Dou's insistence is that he clearly knows how much helplessness there is in reality, lack of money and capital, but he has been doing it and is unwilling to relax the requirements for coffee. If you want to find a clue to the story of Uncle Dou and Coffee, it seems that Coffee met Uncle Dou, and then Uncle Dou chose and sincerely accepted the coffee and found that he had found a space that could match his inner expression. Uncle Dou said he was over 40 and could live according to his own values. "I can't change and I won't change my career at this moment."

Embracing an ideal does not mean doing a useless thing

Uncle Dou drinks coffee every day. He was once asked how much he drank a day, but he couldn't tell. Although he didn't drink it deliberately, he didn't deny his love. More importantly, he enjoyed it. Coffee is a process full of art for him: "from planting a tree, harvesting coffee beans, to roasting by fire, being ground and then extracted by water, and finally being placed in front of you, what you taste is actually the process of being created." it's unique and amazing. "

But even so, the first thing to answer when drinking coffee is whether it is good or not. This is Uncle Dou's treasure book of coffee.

In the eyes of Uncle Dou, he pretended to say, "I love coffee so much, it's always with me." Uncle Dou interprets his inner monologue about coffee in this way: why I make coffee, I can only use it to express my recognition of the values and worldview I follow. This is warmth and love. I believe in warmth and love. I also believe in a sincere world.

When you see that Uncle Dou is picky about the details of coffee making, you will think that Uncle Dou's inner monologue is true. He praises his ideal coffee in the hope that the coffee will return to its real state, taste good and be able to convey feelings. Weaving an ideal about coffee is a way for Uncle Dou to express himself, and he is willing to express it in this way. In his coffee world, he is in no hurry to express, nor is he mixed with hypocrisy or affectation. Uncle Dou doesn't want to talk about how much he loves coffee. He thinks that even if he is a pig killer, he will learn the world level and enjoy himself.

Having the ideal of embracing coffee does not mean doing something that is destined to be useless. Uncle Dou is very optimistic. He is sure that he can see the bright future of the Chinese coffee market, but this is only a concept. No one knows when that day will come and what the basis for it will be. Or it can only be said that today is better than two years ago, whether the tomorrow of coffee belongs to him or not, Uncle Dou does not know. In Uncle Dou's coffee "blueprint", he wants to have his own chain system, which is like Starbucks in form, but still makes boutique coffee. Now he is busy with his second store on the east side, and his expectation for it is to let the guests find him.

On the way to achieving the ideal of coffee, Uncle Dou lived a very real life. When he was enjoying the life of coffee, what he cared about most was transmission and expression. Uncle Dou once said to his wife, "I most want to leave this world next to the coffee roaster. I don't mean to be dedicated, but I feel that only there can I express myself." (Wang Ting)

(responsible Editor: Leo)