Coffee Chronicles - Issue 2 - October 2017

ISSUE 2 OCTOBER 2017 

Hot shots 

Baristas performing exquisitely 

at the barista championships 

What’s Roasting? 

The impact of VAT on the 

consumer in the UAE and 

Coffee Planet 

Centre stage with the team that 

makes Coffee Planet designs pop 

RISE 

and 

GRIND 

Living la vida 

LOCA 

Sparks 

As we celebrate 

Abigail & April’s union 

Performing passionately 

C-Stores mystery shopper 

achievements and more 

You’ve never TASTED COFFEE like this before

CONTENT 

Editor - Business 

Kerri Murphy 

Romany Ward 

Editor - Human Resources 

Carmen Hofmeester 

Contributing Writers 

Debbie Murray 

Elina Iliushenko 

Editor - Entertainment 

Debbie Murray 

Romany Ward 

Photography 

Communications Committee 

Layout and design 

Carmen Hofmeester 

Essam Chaudhry 

04 

20 

08 

34 

35 

29 

16 

10 

28 

12 

14 

22 

26 

27 

06 

24 

16 

30 

FEATURES 

Barista championships 

What’s roasting? 

BUSINESS 

VAT - How does it work? 

Customer success 

International news 

Retail news 

Living la vida LOCA: introducing the new filter 

C-Stores updates 

New Coffee Planet Origins 

HUMAN RESOURCES 

Centre stage with the Design Team 

Doctor’s orders 

Ten year tenure milestones 

Magic minutes with Munsad 

Meet our bright beginners 

Rise and grind 

They went the extra mile 

ENTERTAINMENT 

Sparks: The Coffee Planet fairytale 

Debbie’s Corner 

2 coffeeplanet.com

FROM THE 

COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMITEE 

Hi coffee-lovers and welcome to the second edition of 

our quarterly newsletter, Coffee Chronicles. We got some 

great feedback after the inaugural edition last quarter 

and have had many of you sending us your pictures, 

news and updates from different sectors of the business. 

Coffee Chronicles aims to provide an insight across all 

departments within Coffee Planet and act as a medium 

to share intel, achievements and any other relevant 

information amongst all staff – thank you to all who 

helped contribute to this issue! 

It’s definitely great morning-coffee reading material! 

The editorial team. 

coffeeplanet.com 

3

WE LOVE COFFEE 

A-LATTE 

Speciality Food Festival 

4 coffeeplanet.com

BARISTA CHAMPIONS 

This month, Coffee Planet helped run three barista 

championships; at The Fairmont Dubai, Caribou and 

The Specialty Food Festival at the Dubai World Trade 

Centre. 

THE SPECIALTY FOOD FESTIVAL: 

Cleia Junquiera, as part of the SCA board in the UAE, 

helped to organise the National Barista and Latte art 

championships at this year’s Specialty Food Festival. 

The UAE’s best baristas competed for recognition in the 

art of designer coffee preparation. 

THE CHAMPIONSHIPS CONSISTED OF 2 PARTS: 

Art bar; where creative and precision patterns are the 

holy grail, and Stage Presentation; where matching 

free-pour coffees in various artisan formats vie for the 

highest star rating. The participants’ brews were rated 

on various criteria including taste, presentation, and 

technique. The winner of the National Barista & Latte 

Art Championship will be representing the UAE when 

the World Barista & Latte Art Championships are staged 

in Amsterdam in June 2018. 

Cleia, Dhiraj 

and the winners 

CARIBOU AND FAIRMONT DUBAI BARISTA 

CHAMPIONSHIPS 

These annual in-house competitions offer employees 

the chance to compete for ‘top of the class’ overseen, 

judged and run with help of Coffee Planet QS 

experts. These competitions help incentivise industry 

professionals to maintain a high standard of coffee 

preparation and the team is happy to be a part of 

training baristas under popular brand chains for cafés 

and hotels. 


5

“ 

...CR 

Coffee Planet appreciates the effort and 

the time employees have invested into their 

roles. 

We have noticed that since the time you have 

joined the company, you have displayed great 

enthusiasm to learn and grow professionally. 

You have been working hard and also worked 

overtime to gain the maximum benefit 

from your work. We might not show our 

appreciation frequently as the work keeps us 

busy all the time, but we never fail to notice 

the hard work of our employees in the long 

run. 

Vincent Tomo 

July 2017 

To show our appreciation for your work and 

conduct, we bestow upon you the Certificate 

of the ‘The Employee of the Month’. 

This is a gesture from our part to reward the 

efforts of our employees with appreciation 

certificates. The ‘Employee of the Month’ 

certificate is a constant reminder of your 

achievements from our side. 

Carol Del la Cruz 

August 2017 

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence 

then, is not an act, but a habit. 

Katrina Sibucao 

August 2017 

EMPLOYEE 

OF 

THE 

MONTH 

Archilles 

September 2017 

6 coffeeplanet.com

RISE AND GRIND... 

USHING IT... 

...STIRRING IT UP” 

ANA MARIA ALDANA 

ASSISTANT BUSINESS SUPPORT 

MANAGER 

Ana Maria has made some significant 

changes in the sales team by 

implementing data analytical measures 

to improve business relationships with 

our clients and implementing lean 

process improvements. 

Key areas of her role include: 

• Working closely with the wider 

• Operations team to ensure that the 

sales strategy analysis needs are 

addressed in a timely and accurate 

manner. 

• Development of best practice 

process for the business CRM, 

regading proposals, contract 

management and advising on 

contract governance. 

• Leads across the business ERP 

• project, assesing the current 

situation, identifying and tracking 

data issues, planning and assisting 

on 

• recommendations for resolution. 

• Evaluate and identify market 

trends by driving initiatives and 

performing activities related to 

competitor tracking/mapping, 

promotion 

• opportunities, industry research, 

etc. 

• Support the planning and 

execution of market campaigns to 

drive the business and goals, and 

examine a campaign’s ROI. 

• Identify and support new business 

development initiatives across the 

business through market/price/ 

competition data sets, surveys and 

volume estimates. 

LARISA POSIRCA 

JUNIOR SALES EXECUTIVE 

Larisa was promoted as Junior Sales 

Executive, Sales – Foodservice & OCS 

Department. department. Larisa has 

worked for Coffee Planet for less 

than one year and has climbed the 

professional ladder with absolute 

adeptness. 

Larisa has taken over the role in Abu 

Dhabi and has adapted to the market 

quickly in such a short span since 

going out in the field. 

The key areas of Larisa’s new role 

include: 

• Develop new business in the 

Foodservice and OCS Area for the 

Abu Dhabi market. 

• Build strong relationships with 

new key vendors. 

• Increase new contact rate 

• Increasing sales volume for the 

Abu Dhabi market 

• Improving lead response time 

• Improving quote to close ratio in 

the OCS area 

Larisa’s reporting line will remain the 

same. 

Let us all congratulate Larisa on her 

outstanding performance which led to 

her promotion. 


7

8 coffeeplanet.com

What does VAT mean to me? 

Will I pay VAT every time I purchase something at 

the grocery? 

Not at the moment. There will be a number of items in your 

shopping cart that will be VAT-exempt. Younis Al Khouri, 

undersecretary at the Ministry of Finance, has said that GCC 

states had already agreed to exempt some food products, 

as well as the healthcare and education sectors. That 

means your grocery, hospital or school bills will most likely 

remain unchanged, unless there are price hikes. A new law, 

however, has yet to be released to specify which items are 

non-taxable. 

When I buy electronics, clothes, home furnishings and 

other non-essentials, shall I expect to pay more once VAT is 

implemented? 

Yes. Expect to pay a tax when buying electronic items, home 

appliances and other big-ticket goods. If you want to own a 

brand-new mobile phone that costs Dh2,600, for instance, 

prepare to pay an extra Dh130. 

How about buying airline tickets, will it also be taxable? 

We will have to wait and see, but if we look at examples 

in other countries, for instance in the UK as well as in 

Singapore (where VAT is called GST), passenger transport 

carries VAT at zero percent. So, it is expected that air tickets 

in the UAE may be carrying similar VAT rate of zero percent. 

Will the 5 per cent VAT increase the cost of living in UAE? 

The cost of living will likely go up slightly for a lot of 

people, but this will all depend on the individual’s buying 

preferences and lifestyle. If you keep on taking home things 

that are taxable and maintain an expensive lifestyle, expect 

your outgoings to increase. 

Will tourists also pay VAT? 

As you may have heard in the news over the last 18 

months or so VAT is being introduced in the GCC, 

specifically in the UAE from 1st January 2018. 

What is VAT? 

What is VAT? 

VAT stands for Value Added Tax, it is classed as a 

consumption tax in that the tax should be with the 

person who ends in possession of the item or benefits 

ultimately from the service provided, companies like 

us will pay VAT on purchases and have to charge 

VAT on sales, paying or receiving the net over to the 

government, the laws are still being finalised to 

confirm what items sit where but there will be three 

VAT rates and likely items included: 

Yes. Tourism spending is a major source of revenue for the 

UAE and goods purchased by visitors will not be exempted 

at the point of sale. Anyone buying perfumes, make-up, 

luxury bags and big-ticket items in the UAE can expect to 

pay an additional 5 per cent of the sale price. The Ministry of 

Economy, however, assured that the tax rate is “deliberately 

low so that VAT is a limited burden on all consumers.” It 

also remains to be seen if tourists will be given the option 

to obtain a tax refund at some point, as observed in other 

countries. 

What other taxes is the UAE considering? 

The UAE is not discounting the possibility of collecting 

other forms of tax. As per global best practice, the UAE is 

exploring other tax options as well. However, these are still 

being analysed and it is unlikely that they will be introduced 

in the near future. The UAE is not currently considering 

personal income taxes, however. 

Standard – 5%: This will include most items except 

those shown in other codes 

Zero Rated – 0%: Education, healthcare, new 

residential property and local transport 

Exempt – N/A: Old residential property 


9

10 coffeeplanet.com 

C-STORE 

UPDATES

NEW ON-THE-GO 

CUPS 

COMING 

Coming soon to a Coffee Planet near you… 

we have a new and improved design for our 

on-the-go cups. 

Some of the main differences you will 

notice include the use of the Arabic tile 

pattern and the embossing of the design 

and logo. We will be launching the new 

‘post-makeover’ cups soon so keep an eye 

out for them in-store. 

NEW HOUSING 

UNITS 

Coffee Planet is now in the production 

phase of 220 new Coffee Planet Signature 

housing units for c-stores. This will be a 

major upgrade to the look of the machines 

and our brand presence in the c-store outlets. 

The new housing units will be installed 

in all ADNOC sites. Installations are scheduled 

to start in the coming weeks with the 

aim of finalising all 220 be the end of 2017. 

ENOC will also be trialing one of these with 

the potential to install in all sites. 


11

CENTRE 

STAGE 

with the 

Design Team 

“You see things; and you say 

‘Why’? But I dream things that 

never were; and I say “Why not’?” 

- George Bernard Shaw 

MEET THE DESIGN TEAM 

Essam Chaudhry, Graphic Designer 

Fahd Malik, Jnr. Graphic Designer 

For those of you who do not know, almost 

all design requirements at Coffee Planet are 

completed in-house. From office and café 

requests, to hotel and retail requirements 

and everything in between, the design team 

are responsible for all of the artworks you 

see, including this very magazine. Essam 

and Fahd juggle multiple requests on a dayto-day 

basis yet always perform to the best 

of their ability. We talked to the boys so that 


we could learn a little more about our hero 

team of the quarter…

What you like best about your department? 

Essam: My team - sports a good spirit 

Fahd: Good teamwork 

You’re happiest when? 

E: When deadlines are met 

F: Enjoying the weekends 

What you fear the most? 

E: The headless horseman 

F: All kinds of bugs 

Proudest artwork? 

E: The Coffee Planet Franchise Manual 

F: An Alpha Tours magazine that I designed 

What challenges do you face on a daily basis? 

E: Morning traffic 

F: Every day you learn something new. This can be a 

challenge 

Top three highlights in Coffee Planet? 

E: Work environment, endless coffee and Ali’s laugh 

F: Friendly staff, designing, First Thursday 

People would be surprised to know that… 

E: I used to be able to be able to ride a rollercoaster during 

work hours… 

F: I’m getting married on the 21st of October 

If you could do it all over again, you would… 

E: Re-live life over as a punk rocker 

F: Be a billiard’s champion 

Favourite memory in Coffee Planet? 

E: Our first Franchise deal (KSA) with the new branding 

F: The excitement of the first day on the job 

If you could sing any song on American Idol, X-factor or 

Britain’s got talent, what would it be? 

E: Crystal Ship by The Doors 

F: Wild World by Cat Stevens 

Would you describe yourself as a hunter or gatherer? 

E: A bit of both 

F: Gatherer 

You’re a new addition to the crayon box, what color would 

you be and why? 

E: Red, a passionate tone. Wild things happen when it’s 

thrown into the mix. 

F: Black. It’s my favorite colour/shade 

What’s the color of money? 

E: Black 

F: Bottle green 

What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you recently? 

E: I once mistook a food delivery (for a tasting) for First 

Thursday lunch 

F: Essam’s jokes 

How does the internet work? 

E: Poseidon, the God of the Sea owns and works the internet 

F: Via cables under the ground and ocean. I think they are 

long enough to circle the world 24 times. 


13

DOCTOR’S ORDERS 

Al Futtaim Willis in collaboration with Coffee Planet is 

rolling out a flu campaign for all covered members. 

Coffee Planet employees can visit a Unicare clinic and 

avail of flu vaccinations at the clinic by showing their 

EID card and an insurance membership card, before 

the start of the flu season for a mere AED40/- 

C 

14 coffeeplanet.com

OFFEE PLANET BLOG 

COLD BREW Vs ICED COFFEE 

These chilled beverages may be of the same family but they’re 

more like siblings than twins. Each has a unique brewing 

method and equally different taste outcomes. Both are of course 

popular, but many people are unaware of the key differences 

between the two. This blog will highlight the basic distinctions… 

First of all, iced Coffee is 

brewed double strength 

then cooled, which creates 

a refreshing, lighter body. It 

is often served with sugar or 

milk. Because the ice dilutes 

the strength and flavour of the 

coffee, it is brewed at double 

strength using a classic filtered 

brewing method with hot 

water, such as a Chemex or 

Moccamaster brew. 

The cold brew is a longer process, filtering the cold water 

through grounds. It usually has direct contact with the coffee 

grounds between 12-24 hours. Once the coffee has finished 

steeping, the end product is a strong concentrate that can be 

mixed with water to make cold brew. Because it is made without 

heat, it creates a lower acidity and a smoother, naturally sweeter 

taste. In other words, it tastes as though it was meant to be cold. 

Why not try these methods for yourself and see which you 

prefer? To make your brew taste even stronger, you can take a 

pot of cool coffee and pour it into an ice cube tray and freeze 

it. The next day, pour hot coffee over your coffee ice cubes and 

voila. Let us know which you prefer by uploading your coffee of 

choice on Instagram using the hashtag #coffeeplanet. For more 

of our coffee blogs, visit coffeeplanet.com. 

*The abovementioned 

machine and 

brewing gadget 

are available at 


HAPPY EXPERIMENTING 


15

Abigail & April 

SEPTEMBER 28, 

2017 

16 coffeeplanet.com

H 

LY BEANS 

THEY TIED THE KNOT 

Coffee Planet wishes 

April and Abigail a big 

congratulations and the 

very best for the future. 


17

pour-over coffe 

New LOCA filter – brewing guide, staff prices 

The newest of brewing gadget innovations has 

landed at Coffee Planet, helping those of us 

less skilled in the art of coffee preparation, 

to make the perfect brew! The LOCA filter is 

exclusive to Coffee Planet in the UAE and is 

available on our online store. Here is all you 

need to know – spread the word! 

living la vida 

LOCA 

A number of ind 

that metal and 

profile of a coff 

good clarity to 

remove essenti 

cloth filters can 

are said to ofte 

of a cup. The LO 

filtration system 

combining clar 

key selling points 

• The filter is designed to reduce harsh 

flavours by 70% when compared to paper 

or metal filters, creating a smoother aftertaste 

• The ceramic body of the filter is comprised 

of thousands of tiny holes that allow the 

coffee to be filter through at an adjustable 

rate 

• This manual brewing method, allows you, 

the user, to control strength of the brew 

with the pour of water and coffee ground 

type. It works best with medium course 

ground coffee 

• The gadget is durable (it will last a long 

time if looked after properly) and it is 

reusable 

• The filter is lightweight and noticeably 

superior to those who grind their beans 

and brew their own coffee 


• Exclusive to Coffee Planet in the UAE

ustry specialists have stated 

paper filters can alter the taste 

ee and although they may provide 

the brew, they are noted to also 

al oils from the coffee. Metal or 

improve the body however they 

n leave sediment at the bottom 

CA filter provides a new kind of 

with the best of both worlds, 

ity and body to make the ideal 

e. 

how 

TO 

Regular 135 AED 165 AED 

LOCA 

Price to other distributors 

CP Staff price 

Retail Selling price 

Online price 

Large 160 AED 205 AED 

Pour a good amount of hot water (no cold water) 

through the filter and verify that the water has 

passed through at an acceptable rate through your 

filter. If not, please unclog your filter using our 

recommended methods *refer to images 

Flow rate may be determined by how much 

water is added to the filter at any one time. 

For a stronger coffee, add water in smaller, 

more frequent pours 

Grinding your own beans is recommended to 

create medium coarse coffee grounds for optimum 

filtration (grain size equal to about the tip of a pen) 

Place your desired amount of medium-course 

ground coffee into your ceramic filter. We 

recommend 10g to 15g of ground coffee with 200ml 

to 250ml hot water for single cup and 30g to 45g 

ground coffee with 400ml to 450ml hot water for 

2-3 cup serving (adjust to your taste preference 

Pour your boiled water into the filter over your 

coffee, pour enough hot water in to steep the 

coffee. Allow about 30 seconds for the coffee to 

saturate the bloom. After that, pour in hot water 5 

to 6 times, over 4-minute period 


19

WHAT’S 

roasting? 

COFFEE PLANET RESERVE RANGE 

We are getting ready to launch a new 

Coffee Planet sub-brand called ‘Coffee 

Planet Reserve’ into our retail range. 

The vision behind the Reserve range is to 

offer a specialty blend of our finest single 

origin coffees, sourced from Africa or the 

Americas which will include whole bean, 

ground and capsule varieties. 

These specialty blends include: 

African Blend: 

Kenya Mwiria, Burundi and Ethiopia East 

Harrar. 

Tasting notes: notes of roasted almonds, 

hazelnuts, plums, raisins, molasses, red 

roses, phosphoric acidity, full body. 

Americas Blend: 

Brazil Sitio Sertãozinho, Colombia Nariño 

and Nicaragua El Bosque. 

Tasting notes: notes of lemon, orange, 

green apple, vanilla, caramel sweetness, 

citric acidity, medium to full body. 

20 coffeeplanet.com

NITRO MACHINES AND COLD BREW 

Nitro cold brew coffee is a method of cold steeping coffee for 12-24 hours for 

a smooth taste. Rich flavours are extracted from the 

coffee, without the bitterness and acidity that comes from heating it. By 

adding nitrogen to the cold brew, the coffee develops a creamy and sweet 

finish that can be enjoyed without milk or sugar. Best of all, nitro cold brew 

has almost zero calories so you can drink up! 

COLD BREW: 

As part of the Reserve family, Coffee Planet will be introducing a cold brew 

coffee as an exciting ready-to-drink option for foodservice and retail! The 

cold brew will feature a blend of our finest African single origins with notes of 

orange, hazelnut and a caramel finish in a full body. 

Cold brew coffee is crafted via a long-term filtering method without heat. 

As the trend for specialty coffee continues to flourish amongst consumers 

in the region, the addition of a cold brew option represents Coffee Planet’s 

responsibility to meet these demands for clients. 

For more information on what exactly makes cold brew different from the 

traditional iced coffee, you can read our latest blog on the topic online. 

NITRO and COLD 

BREW 


21

TEN YEAR TENURE MILE 

1 

1 

5 

9 

3 

7 

2 

6 

10 

4 

8 

11 

12 

22 coffeeplanet.com

STONES 

AND MORE.... 

They gave it their best shot and they achieved a 

latte. Let’s congratulate those team members 

who have achieved the milestone of working in 

Coffee Planet for 10 years and more. 

14 

3 

10 

YEARS 

1. ANABELLE AYSON PURI 

2. FELITA AMBATALI FERNANDEZ 

3. GRAZIELLA VISIA BULATAO DELA PEÑA 

4. JACQUES MHANNA 

5. MARICELLE PAREJA DIGOL 

6. MARY ANNE PINEDA ROQUE 

7. MOHAMMED IRFAN USMAN 

8. MOHSAN AMIN 

9. MURLEEDHARAN PADINHARE VAZHAYIL 

10. RAYMOND LOPEZ RICO 

11-12 

YEARS 

11. EMERITO CANSINO MARCOS 

12. EVANGELINE BERMUDO BAE 

13. JANET SAB-IT ATEN-AN 

14. MA. CAROL LOUIE GUITERREZ DELA CRUZ 


23

They went the extra mile 

STAFF ACHIEVEMENTS & ACCREDITATIONS: 

AJAY PATHURI 

Senior Training Executive 

AST Accreditation 

Ajay is now AST certified 

Many congratulations to our talented Senior Training Executive, Ajay 

Pathuri on his AST certification. What is AST we hear you ask? The AST 

Certification is a comprehensive 9 + month blended (online and in-class) 

training designed to provide coffee professionals with the knowledge 

and skills to teach their skills to others and deliver SCA- grade courses. 

The course is recognised as a global standard for the best of the best 

and achievement is a lengthy process, through 3 different tiers. Inclusive 

of written and practical examinations, students are required to pass 

each module, audited by the SCA. 

PILAR LUQUE 

Commercial Manager - Retail 

Stanford Business School 

Ajay’s time and dedication to this certification is a true reflection of his 

passion for coffee and the industry and we are proud to have him as 

such an asset to the team, reflecting his knowledge in his training for 

the company. 

Pilar gained a qualification from Stanford 

school of buisness 

Retail Manager, Pilar Luque, was accepted 

onto the Executive Education Strategic 

Marketing Management course at 

Stanford. 

Mike took part in a panel discussion on ‘how to best harness the power 

of marketing’ 

Coffee Planet’s very own Commercial Director, Mike Butler, took part in 

the highly popular ‘Spark Series’ panel discussion on September 26th. 

Spark Series is an initiative by Itani & Company Marketing Consultants 

to help SMEs learn how to best harness the power of marketing where 

the talks focus on different areas of branding and marketing. 

The theme of this particular event was ‘How to build a brand that builds 

your business’ during which Mike shared his pearls of wisdom to a soldout 

audience. 


MIKE BUTLER 

Commercial Director 

Spark Series panel discussion 

She took part in this prestigious 

programme to enhance her knowledge 

and learning in a variety of fields related 

to sales and marketing. The opportunity 

also allowed her to network with other 

like-minded professionals and share 

real on-the-job experiences. Drawing 

on the unique Silicon Valley spirit, this 

programme included content on innovation 

and decision-making that is critical to 

create a cohesive sales and marketing 

strategy. 

The class of SMM2017 was composed of 45 

senior professionals coming from different 

companies such as Google, AT Kearney 

and FRANKE. 

Stanford Graduate School of Business 

ranks in the top-3 in the world

Cleia’s election onto the 

UAE SCA board 

We are very proud to announce that 

our Roastmaster, Cleia Junqueira 

has been elected to the board of 

the SCA-UAE Chapter as Events 

Coordinator and she has already 

been instrumental in setting up 

the National Barista and Latte Art 

Competition held at the recent 

Specialty Food Exhibition. This was 

a huge success. 

Well done Cleia and good luck with 

future events. 

As a brief introduction, in 2015 the 

Specialty Coffee Association of 

America and the Speciality Coffee 

Association of Europe (now known 

as the Specialty Coffee Association) 

collaborated to help create the 

first national chapter in the UAE. 

A Chapter is formed by around 

five passionate and dedicated 

volunteers who are each elected 

into a specific role to support SCA 

members in a specific country or 

region. The number of volunteers 

(between 3-5) per Chapter is 

dependent on the number of SCA 

members in each specific country. 

SCA National Chapters represent 

members’ needs on a local level 

through support, networking 

events, organising competitions and 

communications. With currently 

over 30 chapters operating across 

the world, it enables all members in 

each country to have an immediate 

point to call, gaining support and 

information for local championships 

and events and providing quick and 

effective communication. 

SCA conducts an election every 

two years for each Chapter. This 

ensures all SCA members have 

the chance to vote for their 

coordinators. The successful 

candidates then take on the role for 

the next two years. 

CLEIA JUNQUEIRA 

Roastmaster 

SCA UAE Chapter board member 


25

MAGIC MINUTES 

WITH MUNSAD 

29 

employees make up the team behind our Supply 

Chain function. That’s a large number, which 

makes it hard to put a face to every name – but 

with our Employee Spotlight series, we’re giving 

it a go. 

Our employees are what truly make Coffee Planet a 

diverse and a unique place to work. We have some 

pretty amazing people with many backgrounds and 

different personalities who have a real passion for what 

they do. 

Each post in the series will highlight individual 

members. We’ll learn more about their lives – both 

professional and personal. We recently sat down with 

Muhammad Munsad. Here’s what he had to say! 

What gets you out of bed in the 

morning? 

Ans: Excitement to face the 

unknown 

How would you describe your day 

job to a child? 

Ans: I work as a shop keeper 

What is your biggest achievement 

to date – personal or 

professional? 

Ans: Completion of my Graduation 

studies 

What does a typical day look 

like for you and what are you 

currently working on? 

Ans: I like playing football and 

working hard at the warehouse 

What three words would you use 

to describe your role? 

Ans: Honest, responsible and 

caring 

If you could switch jobs with 

someone, who would it be? 

Ans: Senior manager 

What is on your wish list for your 

next five years here at Coffee 

Planet? 

Ans: To climb up the hierarchy 

ladder 

What is your favorite line in a 

movie? 

Ans: Aap Devil ke peeche, Devil 

aapkhe peeche…. Too Much Fun 

If Hollywood made a movie about 

your life, who would you like to 

see cast as you? 

Ans: Tom Cruise 

Best vacation you’ve been to? 

Ans: Taj Mahal 

What advice would you give to 

recent new entrants? 

Ans: Be honest and follow 

procedure 

What’s your most memorable 

facepalm moment? 

Ans: When my parents ask me to 

marry. 

When was the last time you 

laughed so hard you cried? 

Ans: When I saw PK Movie 

What is your motto or personal 

mantra? 

Ans: Happiness is Gratitude!!! 

What’s your favorite blog? 

Ans: No Idea 

What’s the most recent app 

you’ve downloaded but are yet to 

use? 

Ans: Ludo Game App 

Given a chance, who would you 

like to be for a day? 

Ans: Best Person on earth 

Do you have an office nickname? 

What is it? 

Ans: Munchu 

What is your guilty pleasure? 

Ans: Crazy Driving 

26 coffeeplanet.com

BRIGHT BEGINNERS 

GEORGE JR. BUGARIN 

PACKING ASSISTANT 

ROASTERY 

NONILON DIMAALA 

WORKSHOP TECHNICIAN 

TECHNICAL 

DANIEL GONZALES 


ROASTERY 

JUSTINA PERECKAITE 

KEY ACCOUNTS 

EXECUTIVE 

SALES-HOTELS 

NAZAKAT ALI 

MERCHANDISER/ 

DRIVER 

IAN JAY ORIO 


ROASTERY 

JONAS RAPANOT 


ROASTERY 

SAJID MAHMOOD 

SERVICE TECHNICIAN 

TECHNICAL 

CHITHRA BUDHA 


ROASTERY 

MARK BRIAN NOVILLA 

SALES SUPPORT-FS/QA 

SALES-FOODSERVICE 


27

NEW SINGLE ORIGINS 

Brazil Sito Seraozinho 

With notes of vanilla, almonds and a caramel 

sweetness, this single origin contains a taste of 

passion fruit and lychee, alongside a malic acidity in a 

medium body. 

Burundi Mahonda 

A distinctive coffee that offers a citric acidity and full 

body, encompassing flavors of almonds, hazelnuts 

and brown sugar sweetness, with the additional notes 

of lemon and red roses. 

Colombia Inga Aponte Honey 

Grown at the highest altitudes, this coffee reveals 

tastes of raisins and plums in a medium to full body. 

A citric acidity is perfectly balanced with a honey 

sweetness and brown sugar, with a jasmine aroma. 

Ethiopia Sidamo 

A complex, coffee with a palate of strawberries, 

blueberries and a honey sweetness that are found 

alongside notes of butter, chocolate, hazelnuts and 

jasmine flower. 

Ethiopia East Harrar 

An intriguing, fruity flavour combination consisting of 

dried plums, apricots, raisins and dates accompanied 

by nuances of milk chocolate and sweet molasses in 

a full body. 


Kenya Zahabu AA+ 

A distinguished coffee with a full body and phosphoric 

acidity that compliments notes of orange, lemon and 

ginger, alongside almonds and sweet pineapple. 

Mandeling Silaban Tao 

From the Central Aceh Highlands, this coffee has 

flavours of apple, hazelnuts, walnuts and sweet 

molasses with herbal notes of lemongrass in a full 

body. 

Nicaragua El Bosque 

This beautiful coffee holds a refined taste of roasted 

almonds and milk chocolate in a medium body. These 

beans balance a citric acidity in lemon and orange 

flavours with a caramel sweetness and hints of dragon 

fruit. 

Nicaragua Microlots 

With notes of lemongrass and orange zest, a honey 

sweetness follows a chamomile flower aroma with 

hints of butter in a medium body. 

Peru Juan Macro El Palto 

A palate of flavours in a medium body, consisting of 

almonds hazelnuts and milk chocolate, combined with 

hints of lemon, orange and a caramel sweetness in a 

citric acidity. 

Rwanda 1000 Hills 

A delightful balance of brown sugar sweetness and 

a citric acidity, this full body coffee contains notes 

of cocoa and red roses with fresh apricot and peach 

flavours.

BEAN THERE DONE THAT 

RETAIL 

This quarter our Coffee 

Planet retail sector 

continues to increase 

penetration into eCommerce 

platforms with new listings 

on popular grocery delivery 

sites Trolley, Early Bird and 

Kibsons. 

The Signature retail range 

is also expanding in-store 

and will now be available in 

Choithrams supermarkets 

from the 20th October. 

We have a number of retail 

trade marketing activations 

planned for the coming 

months, with sampling 

and special discounts 

scheduled in selected 

Zoom, Choithrams and 

Carrefour Abu Dhabi stores 

all throughout the months 

of October, November and 

December. 

Coffee Planet has begun 

a new collaboration with 

Philips to be their preferred 

coffee partner for a new 

bundle offer. We are also 

currently working with them 

on their in-store sampling 

activations to promote this 

exclusive deal. 

Good news for our Private 

Label business this quarter 

as we have once again been 

awarded the tender with 

Agthia, the company behind 

Al Ain water, Capri-Sun and 

Yoplait in the UAE. 


29

I have chosen the laws that I think apply to most of us and 

the ones that, when people don’t follow them, annoy me 

the most!! 

Speed 

Speed Kills. How many times have you been passed by a 

car that makes your vehicle shake because of the speed it 

is going? You check your mirrors and the road behind is 

clear and then suddenly a car flashes past you. Travelling 

at high speed doesn’t give you time to react to a situation 

and it doesn’t give other road users time to react. 

I’m sure most of you will remember the photo below – 4 

people died in 2016 in this Ferrari when it crashed into a 

lamppost in JLT and broke into pieces. The 4 people were 

visitors to Dubai here on holiday – the guy in the photo 

posted it on Instagram with the message “Just landed 

in Dubai and picked up the Ferrari! Don’t worry I won’t 

speed :-)”. 

DEBBIE’S 

CORNER 

For this edition, I thought I would give you some basic 

driving tips to help you be safe on the UAE roads. 

These points are relevant to everyone but those 

of you with Coffee Planet branded vehicles should 

pay particular attention. When you’re sitting inside 

your vehicle, you may forget that the company name 

is featured on the outside of your car in very large 

letters, in Arabic and English – however, other road 

users can clearly see who you work for. Please 

remember this. I have had several phone calls and 

emails over the years from very unhappy and often 

very rude drivers and pedestrians complaining about 

Coffee Planet vehicles. 

It might be because you have blocked someone’s car 

so they can’t get out of a parking space; cut across 

them when changing lanes; made inappropriate hand 

gestures; tooted your horn or just done something 

they didn’t like. From my point of view, it’s not nice 

to have to deal with these upset members of the 

public and from your point of view it can result in 

disciplinary action if your actions are deemed to be 

contrary to Company Policies and Procedures. 

If you are involved in an accident, the police will 

attend and decide who is at fault. If you get the green 

ticket then you are not responsible but a pink ticket 

means it was your fault. A white ticket means no-one 

was at fault. 

I have included a table at the end of this listing 

several traffic fines that apply to all the points 

mentioned below and a few others for good measure! 

These are the very latest traffic fines updated as of 1 

July 2017. 

Slow down if traffic is heavy, it’s raining or visibility is 

limited. It’s better to get to your destination late than not 

get there at all. 

We all think we can travel at up to 20km/hr higher than 

the speed limit but according to the new rule, you could be 

fined AED 300. The easy and cheapest solution is to abide 

by the limit posted on the road sign. 100km/hr means 

100km/hr not 120km/hr. 

Stopping Distances 

An average car travelling at 60km/hr may take up to 33 

metres to stop under normal road conditions. At 100km/ 

hr it may take up to 80 metres to stop and at 120km/hr it 

can take up to 130 metres (this is the length of 6-7 cricket 

pitches or about 1½ football pitches). A larger vehicle will 

take even longer to stop. 

Drive at a speed that will allow you to stop well within 

the distance you can see to be clear. You should allow a 

three-second gap between you and the vehicle in front on 

roads carrying faster moving traffic and the gap should 

be at least doubled on wet roads or when visibility is 

bad. Pick a stationery object on the road (lamppost for 

example) and when the car in front passes that object, 

start counting in seconds how long it is before you reach 

the same object. Less than three seconds means you are 

too close – slow down. 

30 coffeeplanet.com

There’s always that idiot that is so close to the back of 

your car that you can can’t see the front of his car. This 

can be very intimidating and means your reaction time 

will be less because you are concentrating on what he is 

doing, not what is going on in front. It also means that 

if you stop suddenly he won’t be able to react quickly 

enough and is more than likely going to hit you. 

This first photo is a low-speed collision caused by the two 

cars behind being too close to stop. You can see the white 

car at the back has managed to stop, so he left enough 

room. The second and third cars will both receive a pink 

ticket for not keeping a safe distance. 

Mobile Phones and Other Driver Distractions 

Drivers using mobile phones are four times more likely 

to have a collision. Hands-free kits do not make drivers 

safer, you will still be distracted while taking. Only use 

your mobile phone when you are parked. If you have a 

passenger, get them to answer the phone, otherwise let it 

go to voice mail. 

Taking your eyes off the road to change the radio station, 

adjust the navigation system, scroll through your mobile 

phone numbers or send an SMS all take time and can 

cause a distraction. Finding and trying to light a cigarette 

is the same. 

In the UK in August 2016 a lorry driver was sending 

text messages on his phone and when he looked up he 

realised the traffic in front was at a standstill in front. 

This was all caught on his dashcam video and you can see 

the sheer terror in his face when he realises he can’t stop. 

The resulting crash caused the death of a lady, her two 

sons and her partner’s son. Her car can just be seen 

RECYCLING UPDATE 

RECYCLING 

I am currently working with a recycling company to 

set up a viable recycling programme for plastic, glass, 

paper and cardboard for Coffee Planet and I will give 

you more information as soon as I can. 

In our previous newsletter, I gave you several reasons 

why you shouldn’t drink bottled water – and the cost 

to the environment in discarded plastic was a very 

important reason. 

We have really turned around our 500ml water 

bottle consumption since then and purchases have 

plummeted. 

The following figures are for Head Office only, but 

figures received from the Distribution Centre reflect 

the same improvement and I am sure it is the same 

throughout Coffee Planet. 

In June, we ordered 36 x 5-gallon bottles and 576 x 

500ml bottles = 288 litres (equivalent to 15 x 5-gallon 

bottles). Had we ordered only 5-gallon bottles, the total 

would have been 36 + 15 = 51 

In July, we ordered 41 x 5-gallon bottles and 425 x 

500ml bottles = 217 litres (equivalent to 11.48 x 5-gallon 

bottles). Had we ordered only 5-gallon bottles, the total 

would have been 41 + 11.5 = 52.5 

behind the white lorry with 2 vehicles between her and 

the lorry driver. These other vehicles were shunted out of 

the way and the lorry hit her stationery vehicle pushing it 

under the white lorry. They were returning from holiday 

and her partner was travelling in a separate vehicle in 

front of her with his other son. They were both injured in 

the crash. The partner witnessed the death of his family 

and the lorry driver was sentenced to 10 years in prison. 

Is sending a text that important? 

In August, September and October we ordered an 

average of 50 x 5-gallon bottles and no 500ml bottles. 

As you can see, our water consumption is the same, 

however, in just 3 months we have probably saved 

over 1,700 x 500ml plastic bottles from ending up on 

a landfill (come on, be honest – how many did you 

actually recycle?!). Different kinds of plastic can 

degrade at different times, but the average time for 

a plastic bottle to completely degrade is at least 450 

years. It can even take some bottles up to a 1000-years 

to biodegrade! 

As well as not discarding thousands of plastic bottles, 

costs have dropped significantly - so it’s a win, win 

situation! 


31

DRIVING IN THE UAE 

Driving in fog. 

Fog is like a cloud at ground level. It forms when the 

temperature drops very low and invisible water vapour 

in the air condenses to form suspended water droplets. 

Fog can be patchy. It can be very dense in some areas, 

and light in some. This creates visibility problems and 

very dangerous driving conditions. Fog usually comes 

during early mornings on the months when the weather 

is changing (start or end of summer in the UAE). 

In March 2008, three people were killed and 277 injured 

in the UAE when a total of 227 cars and 12 buses collided 

in thick fog and several burst into flames. This is said 

to have been the world’s largest traffic pile-up. The 

accident happened during peak rush hour on the main 

Dubai-Abu Dhabi road and it was chaos for hours and 

hours. 

Slow down when driving in fog. Use your low beam 

headlights and fog lights if you have them. High beams 

reflect off the moisture droplets in the fog, making it 

harder to see. Do not use your hazard lights – people 

know it is foggy, so they are aware of the hazard. 

Flashing hazard lights make it harder to see brake lights 

and indicators increasing the risk of accidents. That is a 

real pet hate of mine! 

Another of my pet hates – people who don’t indicate! 

Not signalling lane changes, negotiating roundabouts 

or turning at junctions increases the risk of accidents 

as other drivers don’t know what you are about to 

do. The black stick on your steering column is your 

indicators. They are called indicators because they give 

an indication to other drivers of the what you are going to 

do. Use them. However, just because you are using your 

indicator doesn’t give you the right of way. Indicating 

that you are going all the way round a roundabout from 

the inside lane doesn’t make it a legal move! 

Driving slowly in the fast lane. This is as dangerous as 

speeding as it requires other drivers to brake or change 

lanes to avoid the slower vehicle. The outer lanes on the 

highway are for over-taking not cruising. When you have 

passed the slower vehicle, move back into one of the 

inside lanes. Undertaking is an offence but sometimes 

lazy drivers give you no choice. How many times have 

you been on a highway and there is more traffic in the 

outside lanes going slower than the traffic in the inside 

Unacceptable Driving Behaviours 

Here’s a summary of some the above points and a few 

more that really put my blood pressure up! When we 

drive, we should realise that there are such things as 

unacceptable driving behaviours which not only cause 

tension on the roads, they also make driving more 

dangerous. 

Driving too fast for the situation. 

Tailgating or driving too close to the vehicle in front. 

Flashing headlights or honking the horn to intimidate 

other drivers. 

Cutting in front of other drivers or jumping the queue 

just to get a few metres ahead. This really bugs me!! 

I’m sure you have been stuck at traffic lights that have 

changed half a dozen times and don’t get through 

because people are cutting in at the front of the queue. 

What makes them think they are better than everyone 

else and don’t have to queue? Not only is it rude and 

discourteous, it is also dangerous because they are 

blocking another lane when trying to push in and faster 

moving traffic will be coming up behind them. Please 

don’t do this. 


lanes. Overtake and then return to the slower lane when 

it is safe to do so. 

Do not use the hard shoulder as another lane on the 

highway. This should be kept free at all times for 

emergency vehicles or vehicle breakdowns.

FINES, BLACK POINTS AND VEHICLE 

CONFISCATION PERIOD 

UPDATED TRAFFIC FINES AS OF JULY 1, 2017 

THE FOLLOWING PHOTO IS WHAT 

HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE TOO CLOSE TO 

THE VEHICLE IN FRONT AND TRAVELLING 

AT SPEED. DON’T THINK ANYTHING ELSE 

NEEDS TO BE SAID EXCEPT THE DRIVER 

WOULDN’T HAVE SURVIVED TO RECEIVE 

THE PINK TICKET. 

KEEP YOUR DISTANCE. 

VIOLATION 

Exceeding the maximum speed limit by not 

more than 40km/hr 





Jumping a red light 

Overtaking on the hard shoulder 

Parking in fire hydrant places or those 

reserved for people with special needs or 

ambulance parking 

Parking behind vehicles and blocking their 

movement 

Parking illegally 

Parking vehicles on the pavement 

Entering the road dangerously 

Failure to fasten seat belts while driving – all 

passengers 

Failure to leave a safe distance between you 

and the vehicle in front 

Not using indicators when changing 

direction or turning 

Overtaking dangerously 

Using hand-held mobile phones or being 

distracted in any way 

Rubber necking at the scene of an accident 

Driving at night or in foggy weather 

without lights 

Leaving vehicle on the road with its engine 

running 

FINE IN AED 

700 

600 

300 

1,000 

1,000 

1,000 

500 

50 

400 

600 

400 

400 

400 

600 

800 

1,000 

500 

300 


33

WORDS CANNOT 

ESPRESSO HOW MUCH 

WE BEAN TO THEM 

Here’s a little love from 

social media this quarter 

34 coffeeplanet.com

International News 

FEDERICO ORTILE 

International Sales Manager 

Our international sales manager Federico is 

continuing to lead the charge in pursuit of Coffee 

Planet world domination! Our Middle-Eastern 

presence is expanding to cover more countries 

through our distributors. We have added new 

distributors in Lebanon (Levant Foodies), Jordan 

(Kahhaleh), Egypt (Tawzeea and 5-Diamonds), and 

KSA (Coffee Beacon for Foodservice, Global Star for 

Retail). 

We have begun to supply new hotels including the 

Four Seasons, Amman, the Radisson Blu, Beirut 

and the Hotel Savoy in Cairo. Our international 

retail hold has also grown this quarter with 

entry into new supermarket chains in Lebanon - 

Charcutier Aoun, Bou Khalil, and Carrefour. 

Coffee Planet 

present in Lebanon 

Last but certainly not least, the Coffee Planet 

WeChat account in China has officially launched 

and online sales via this platform have begun. 


35

WHAT’S BREWING 

JUN 

29 

A WORLD FULL OF ADVENTURE!! 

Exciting, thrilling, adrenaline-pumping and spinetingling 

– words that describe our Ride of the Year 

summer party! Day, we enjoyed hang out with our 

favorite MARVEL characters, and the prehistoric 

lost world of dinosaurs with hair-raising rides!! 

Day, when thrillseekers and iron-stomach guys 

found Thor doesn’t play nice! 

There were a few special events, and the results of 

these were: 

First to Finish 

Espresso Patronum (Support Team A) 

Best Gumball Ride Score 

The Mug Life (Support Team B) 

Best Picture 

OCD – Obsessive Coffee Drinkers (Sales Hotels & 

International) 

The scoring for the minor places was very 

competitive and there were 4 teams within 1 point 

of each other. However, the final placings were as 

follows (in reverse order): 

4th The Mug Life (Support Team B) 9 

points 

3rd Wakeful (Roastery Team A) 10 

points 

2nd Espresso Patronum (Support Team A) 11 

points 

But the runaway winners with a massive 16 points 

were OCD – Obsessive Coffee Drinkers (Sales – 

Hotels & International). 

We believe you enjoyed the trip to IMG World and 

a lot of you were very serious about the Scavenger 

Hunt and it was great to see people rushing around 

from place to place! 

36 coffeeplanet.com

Calling all friends and family of Coffee Planet! 

We have a new promo code that we want all of you to 

share with your nearest and dearest, giving them a 

year-long discount on certain purchases made via our 

online store. 

Friends and family will receive an exclusive 15% off 

online purchases made from the whole bean, ground, 

capsule and special offer section of our online store 

when they use the code CPFF17 at checkout. 

ROMEO PERELLO 

CHAMPIONSHIP 

If you’re a fan of basketball, chances are 

you’ve seen plenty of games over the years 

and can easily rattle off the best basketball 

games of the bunch. 

Latest outstanding game Coffee Planet vs. 

Goodboy ME on 4th of August, was a close 

match with our team running out 62-59 

winners, and ‘Man of the Match’ was Romeo 

Perello – well done team and well done 

Romeo!! 

New Mix and Match Bundles 

We have created a new ‘Mix and Match’ option for our 

single origin bundles in the online store. You can easily 

combine your favourite taste profiles from each category 

within the Origin range (America, Africa and Asia) to 

create your ideal collection. Visit the Coffee Planet online 

store to have a look. 

AUG 

4 


37

COFFEE PLANET 

GIFT CARD 

Shopping for someone else but not sure what 

to give them? Give them the gift of choice with a 

Coffee Planet gift card. 

Gift cards are delivered by email and contain 

instructions to redeem them at checkout. 

Our gift cards have no additional processing fees. 

for further information visit www.coffeeplanet.com

Coffee Chronicles - Issue 2 - October 2017

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