We had the good fortune of connecting with Nandini Jayaprasad and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nandini, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
My balance has evolved over time to meet with our growing company. My husband and I work together so we get to spend time together working and have learned over time to separate work and personal time. I take some time each day to myself during my meditation and yoga practice. Even during extremely busy days I take a few minutes off to reflect and meditate and that is something that definitely helps me balance out my day.

What should our readers know about your business?
Our family has been growing coffee for four generations in Chikmagalur, India. Our family’s focus on the farm is centered around sustainability for the community, the rainforest and the wildlife. Everything that we have done with coffee cultivation is to live in harmony with nature. We harvest rainwater during the monsoon season to give life to our plants, to provide potable water to the community and to offer a much needed watering hole for the Elephants and other animals that roam the land. We vertically integrated the business with retail and wholesale operations in the United States. While our farm sells to larger roasters in Europe and Asia, we wanted to brand our product in the U.S. to communicate the story of our farm.

We won a medal at the 2019 Golden Bean North America Roasting Competition for our espresso blend. It performed well among many other coffees from around the globe and gave us confidence that we have a high quality and delicious product. While Indian coffee is recognized for its rich history and flavors in the UK, Europe and the Far East, the U.S. coffee market is primarily dominated by Latin and South American coffees. I have dedicated the majority of my time explaining the history of Indian coffee and its roots as one of the oldest coffee growing regions in the World.

We are working to more effectively communicate our brand and the story of our farm online. We are learning every single day. We released some new products and soon realized that we were spreading ourselves too thin. We learned to exit quickly in order to focus our time and energy on our core roasted products. By refocussing our efforts on the core product, we developed new roast profiles that have been a hit with our customers. Our goal is to become a household name recognized for high quality and sustainability. Our coffees are sold in compostable packaging and we practice a 360 degree approach to sustainability that encompasses not only the environment and wildlife but also the coffee growing community. By sustaining the natural rainforests, protecting wildlife and educating the women and children of our coffee growing region, we are supporting the entire ecosystem while also selling delicious award-winning coffee one compostable bag at a time.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love the mountains and my hometown of Chikmagalur. For those interested, I am setting up a wellness retreat on our family farm nestled in the Western Ghat Mountains. I will share the update on our social media when we are ready to host.

Currently, I am located in Palm Beach, Florida so I would be sure to show them around our iconic town. A morning beach run and a dip in the ocean is a must. If you enjoy shopping and an elegant experience Worth Avenue is the place to be. There are many wonderful fine dining options on the island including Trevini and Cafe Boulud. I follow a plant-based diet so for others like me, we would need to visit one of my favorite establishments, Dina’s Vegan Deli and Desserts for the best vegan Philly cheesesteaks. Dina offers gyros, vegan eggs and desserts as well. Darbster in West Palm Beach is another favorite. A visit to Hippocrates is also a must for people looking for a health cleanse. Their raw vegan sprouted lunch is incredible. Sira from Pure Vegan Cakes makes delicious vegan cupcakes and other goodies.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are lots of people who have been a constant support during this entrepreneurial journey. Other than our families and friends I would dedicate this shoutout to my husband David Beil who constantly goes out marketing my family’s coffee and selling it every single day no matter what.

Website: www.chikmonk.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thechikmonk/
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/nandinijay
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thechikmonk/

Image Credits
Wally Holem