The Only Coffee That Helps Rescue Animals

Meet Sanctuary Coffee!

Sanctuary Coffee is one of the small companies with a big heart, or rather two big hearts. Owned by Marcus Wood and Rhian Nolan this London-based business is using their coffee sales as a force for good. The company offers the UK's only vegan-friendly certified coffee that helps rescue animals. Every coffee purchased donates £1 to animal sanctuaries and rescues around the country.

Who is behind Sanctuary Coffee? Could you tell us how it all started?

We met in uni in 2015, both studying music degrees. We had been working in coffee as baristas during that time. Together, we've been vegan since 2016 and have never looked back!

Our backgrounds in coffee and hospitality (along with our vegan lifestyle) have us thinking about what we could do to help sanctuaries and rescues. Most operating sanctuaries have a running cost of £10k + per month - a figure that, unlike animal agriculture, is almost never subsidised or assisted by the government or grant schemes.

We want to use our expertise in sourcing and roasting traceable and delicious coffees to create ongoing financial support for animal rescues and sanctuaries. We want to build a fleet of cafes that champion plants and community. One day, we would like to create a sanctuary of our own to add to the possible avenues for rescued animals to live a happy life.

What inspired you to start an ethical business?

We adopted our rescue greyhound around the same time Marcus began working for a social enterprise coffee company. When we learned how much time, money and resources go into operating rescue centres, we were left feeling gutted we couldn't afford to donate as individuals. We thought, hey, why not start a business that could donate the money these rescues need. Et voila! 

What does it mean for you to be an ethical and sustainable brand?

We wouldn't run a brand if it wasn't ethical or sustainable. We work in specialty coffee because commercial-grade coffee (like regular supermarket brands) is hard to trace back to the farm. Often, this allows for slavery and child labour in the supply chain. Specialty coffee is the other end of the spectrum. Our coffee is sourced directly from producers meaning there is full traceability in every single cup.

How does your business have a positive impact on the planet?

We break our business operations into three categories: People, Production, Planet.

People - We buy from people. Unlike commercial roasters, we shake hands (sometimes over zoom!) with the farmers we buy from. This allows us to know exactly where our money is going to give us every opportunity to do our best by people as we can.

Production - We share a coffee roastery with another business for different reasons: Building a roaster requires a lot of energy and materials - creating a heap of emissions deadly to the environment. Our shared facility runs on carbon-neutral energy for now and will be switching to zero-emission in September when our new catalytic cleaner lands.

Planet: We are totally plastic-free and always will be. As a brand, we help sanctuaries support their animals. But for the wild, the earth should be a sanctuary for the countless species who live there. This means our packaging can and will always be either paper recyclable or home/industrially compostable. We do not want our packaging to last any longer than powering up your mornings for as many mornings as one bag lasts!

Describe your your coffee in 3 words.

Responsible, compassionate, specialty.

What kind of coffee do you offer?

We sell multiple different coffees that each support a different sanctuary. We have a coffee for every flavour profile you may like so switching out your morning coffee has never been easier or kinder!

All of our coffees are named after animals who currently or have resided at the sanctuaries the coffee supports to help make your brew that much more personal.

If Sanctuary Coffee could have a superhero power, what would it be and why?

If Sanctuary Coffee could have a superhero power, it would be to be able to communicate with everyone - a well-caffeinated Dr Doolittle!

If you could pick a brand ambassador, who would it be?

Gaz Oakley! Going vegan whilst at uni, Gaz's recipes made the transition not only so much easier but so much more shareable with family and friends. Gaz also has a mean eye for quality flavours, and we reckon he would have a field day with our coffees! 

What are your tips for launching a successful ethical brand?

Be patient! An imposter syndrome is real - but ignore it; you're meant to do this. Sanctuary Coffee took us two years to launch. We never felt ready, and we were always trying to perfect our strategy and appearance. We hired a mentor in 2020 who told us 'done is better than perfect'. A few months later, we launched!

What is the dream of Sanctuary Coffee?

To have our own sanctuary, cafe and roastery on one plot of land to create a full space of great coffee, great community and a space to meet the wonderful and cheeky animals!

What is the next big thing for Sanctuary Coffee?

We are currently working on our next packaging update to help give us a more polished look and feel (with a super fun twist!).