The Barista

Sam Fletcher, 24, and Matthew Carr, 23, met on a university placement year in Australia, where they discovered a shared passion – for business, the service industry and coffee. By the time they returned to the UK, they already had a business plan in place, now they just needed to finish their degrees and find some much needed funding!

After graduating with First Class Honours, Sam and Matthew had just enough money to buy a coffee machine and a van to move their equipment from one event to another - and The Barista was born.

The Barista served its first hot drinks in January on the Newcastle Quayside, giving people the perfect way to warm up on a crisp winter’s morning. Within a few months, Matt and Sam were recruited by some of the UK and Europe’s biggest brands including Nokia, Inenco and Morrison’s, to provide a caffeine boost and refreshments at high-profile product launches and exhibitions.
 
Sam believes that young people should be using their natural energy and creativity to make something new, “if graduates have enough acumen, passion and drive, they will have a good chance of succeeding”.
 
Although The Barista is going from strength to strength, they are confident that if they come across any problems, there is someone available to offer words of wisdom, “Matthew and I are still in touch with some of our tutors and other contacts we made at university. We can always give them a call if we need advice. They are a great resource”.