Meet the speakers

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  Kieran John Fitzpatrick Coffee Trainer (AST) · Well Grounded

  Read biography: Kieran John Fitzpatrick

  As for my experience, I first started working as a barista and roaster at a micro-roastery 10 years ago. I then pivoted to an education company for a few years, before deciding I wanted to combine the two, and came across Well Grounded. I joined in 2019, and have worked in a number of roles, from progressions to coffee training, and now leading our North Academy in Leeds. I also spent some time working as a FOH manager at a large cafe in New Zealand during a 12 month break from Well Grounded (rejoined in 2023).

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  Marzia Viotti Coffee Excellence Manager · Dalla Corte

  Read biography: Marzia Viotti

  Marzia Viotti is Coffee Excellence Manager at Franke Coffee Systems / Dalla Corte UK, leading training and education, product demonstrations, events, and quality standards for baristas and café teams across the UK. She holds Q Grader and Q Grader Instructor certifications from the SCA (December 2024), and is an Authorised SCA Trainer for Barista Skills, Brewing, and Sensory Skills. Italian by background, with hospitality and specialty coffee experience spanning Italy and the UK, Marzia combines technical rigour with hands-on training expertise. Because she is not busy enough, she enrolled Uni and currently studying Management at Birkbeck, University of London. She is the proud mother of a 13 year-old boy who doesn't like coffee at all.

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  Natalie Hodgkinson Director · Boss and Brew Academy C.I.C

  Read biography: Natalie Hodgkinson

  Natalie is the founder of Boss & Brew Academy, a social enterprise using specialty coffee to tackle youth unemployment in Cardiff. Through a drop-in project backed by Skylark Roasters and the wider Cardiff coffee scene, she's built a genuine community where young people gain skills, confidence, and connections that open doors to work. Boss & Brew is a fierce supporter of the indies and collaborates with industry and third sector organisations to confront a hard truth, that coffee's future won't be inclusive unless we actively make space for the communities who've been left out of the conversation.

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  Hosted by Jon Townsend The Institute of Coffee

Meet the speakers

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  Oscar Wooley Suki Tea

An additional European Speciality Tea Association speaker will be announced.

Meet the speakers

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  Jess McAllister Director · Jungle Coffee

  Read biography: Jess McAllister

  Jess McAllister began her coffee career at Boston Tea Party in Exeter in 2008 before spending more than a decade developing her skills within speciality coffee.

  She founded Jungle Coffee after converting a horse trailer into a mobile coffee business. Since then, Jungle Coffee and its team have travelled throughout the UK serving coffee at festivals, events and film productions. Her journey reflects both entrepreneurial determination and a commitment to building a business on her own terms.

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  Saskia Blum Director · Batch Baby

  Read biography: Saskia Blum

  Saskia Blum has worked in coffee for approximately 15 years, beginning in cafés on Australia's Gold Coast before developing her career through Oxford, Barcelona and London.

  In 2021 she launched Batch Baby and has since grown the business whilst maintaining a strong connection to coffee service and hospitality. Her experience spans both operational and leadership roles across speciality coffee, making her well placed to discuss growth, independence and long-term business sustainability.

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  Michaela Cimprichova Co-Founder · Intermission Coffee

  Read biography: Michaela Cimprichova

  Michaela Cimprichova is the co-founder of Intermission, an independent London-based speciality coffee roastery and café.

  Over the last six years, she has helped build the business around quality, care and people. She believes coffee has a unique ability to create meaningful connections and community. Her work focuses on creating opportunities for staff, developing positive workplace culture and ensuring success is shared across the wider business.

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  Hosted by Grace Talbot Sales Manager · Mió

  Read biography: Grace Talbot

  Grace Talbot is a UK-based coffee professional with experience across wholesale, education, events and community engagement. At Mió she focuses on accessibility, inclusivity and collaborative approaches to value creation within the coffee supply chain.

  She has emceed major international coffee competitions including the World Barista Championship at World of Coffee Milan, the World Cup Tasters Championship in Bangkok, World Coffee in Good Spirits in Brussels and the UK Barista Championships. Through her work with Mió she explores climate-responsive blending, sensory science, client experience and more inclusive approaches to flavour and coffee education.

Meet the speakers

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  Caroline Ottoy Managing Director · WatchHouse

  Read biography: Caroline Ottoy

  With nearly 30 years in the hospitality and retail industries, Caroline has a proven track record of scaling high-street restaurant brands across London and beyond. She began her career at ASK Italian when the business had just three sites, working closely with founders Adam and Sam Kaye to expand it nationwide. Together, they grew the portfolio to include Zizzi and other brands, navigating two venture capital buyouts.

  Her passion for operations led her to Tasty, where she collaborated with the Kayes once more to expand the dim t and Wildwood brands. She played a hands-on role in everything from menu development to restaurant design, ultimately helping grow the estate to 60 restaurants, supported by a central production unit.

  In 2018, Caroline transitioned into retail as Operations Director at Planet Organic, where her most challenging role was steering the brand and its stores successfully through the Covid-19 pandemic.

  In 2023, she joined WatchHouse as Managing Director. Since then, the estate has more than doubled, including the expansion of the business into New York City and with franchise in the UAE. Her career reflects a sustained commitment to innovation, operational excellence, and sustainable growth across the hospitality and retail sectors.

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  James Hennebry CEO · Rosslyn Coffee

  Read biography: James Hennebry

  James Hennebry is the CEO, co-owner/ founder, operator and sometimes barista at Rosslyn Coffee in the City of London. Having previously worked in Live Music events James decided to swap his late nights for early mornings and learnt the craft of specialty coffee on Rosslyn St in West Melbourne. He returned to London in 2015 as Head of Wholesale at Caravan Coffee Roasters before launching Rosslyn in 2018. Now at 10 locations across the Square Mile, Rosslyn remains fully independent to this day and is widely regarded as one of the leading collections of high-volume specialty coffee shops in the world.

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  Annie Whone Head of Category & Product · Black Sheep Coffee

  Read biography: Annie Whone

  Annie Whone is Head of Category & Product at Black Sheep Coffee, where she oversees global supply chain, compliance, new product development and communications. She leads the teams responsible for developing and delivering the brand’s product launches and innovations, taking new ideas from initial concept through to their successful rollout across the global estate.

  Annie joined Black Sheep Coffee more than five years ago as a Cluster Manager, before moving into auditing and progressing through roles including Brand and Compliance Manager and Head of Quality Assurance. Her varied career within the business has given her a broad understanding of the operational, commercial and compliance considerations involved in developing products and scaling a fast-growing hospitality brand.

  Having joined when Black Sheep Coffee had around 30 stores, Annie has played an active role in its journey to approximately 135 locations worldwide (US, GCC, UK currently). This experience has given her a unique perspective on how products, operational standards and supply chains must evolve as a hospitality brand grows internationally.

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  Hosted by Jon Townsend The Institute of Coffee

Meet the speakers

• Max Frick Mount Everest Tea
• Kostas Papatheodorou ohmatcha.gr

Meet the speakers

• Emma Haines Algrano
• Laura Meunier Minga Coffee
• Lisa Lawson Dear Green
• Hosted by Siala Farani-Tomlin