It has been a month since the conclusion of Host23, and we are filled by the invaluable experiences and insights garnered during this event.
The journey began by the end of last year when we made the decision to launch and present the MikafiOne alongside our partner Thermoplan at Host23. Since that choice, our team has been very dedicated, embarking on months of intensive and productive work. In February, we organised a one-month pop-up event, “Kafi neu entdecken,” at Parterre in Lucerne. This allowed us to gather feedback from both customers and staff, enabling us to enhance and implement features in the roaster. The event was a success, providing crucial insights and contributing to the improvement of the Mikafi solution.
In April, Marius and Romain embarked on a month-long journey to Japan, exploring Kyoto, Osaka, and Tokyo. This trip not only provided further insights but also positioned Japan as a potential market for Mikafi. The showcase of the first MikafiOne prototype at FabCafe Kyoto elicited admiration for the machine among the japanese.
The months from May to September were dedicated to refining the machine, its platform, and organizing every detail for Host23 – from the pitch and merchandise to the booth’s aesthetics and communication with Host representatives.
As October arrived, we filled a van with everything we built, and went to Milan. From October 13th to 17th, we engaged with numerous attendees, roasting coffee 20+ times a day, and showcasing the essence of Mikafi. Our meticulously planned setup, including the hoppers, the impressive MikafiOne roasting, and the interactive screen, drew crowds, leaving everyone captivated by the MikafiOne.
Some of the juiciest nuggets of wisdom we snagged from the event were like finding a unicorn in a haystack, and guess what? Mikafi’s solution was that magical unicorn, prancing around as one of the rare few introducing a new product at Host. Our team also basked in the glory of being the unofficial cool kids of Host23, strutting around like fashion istas in perfect harmony with Thermoplan’s uniform.
After a day of sophistication, we transformed from runway models to coffee-packing workers. Every evening we went to our apartment, took off our cool costume and started to pack coffee on the floor, preparing meetings for next day, editing videos and pictures… While doing this talking nonsense and explaining funny situations that we had that day with people. It was very intense but we had a lot of fun 🙂
Host23 marked a pivotal moment for Mikafi – a turning point characterized by the unexpected, incredible feedback, new insights, and the genuine interest people showed when witnessing the MikafiOne in action.
Since then, we have been working towards finding the ideal clients for our first pilots, securing investors willing to collaborate on this exciting project, and establishing partnerships with distributors and clients committed to offering freshly roasted, bespoke, and personalized coffee.
Stay tuned as there are more exciting developments on the horizon!