Social Brew

Coffee has always been powerful.

It warms us up. It wakes us up. It brings us together.

The origins of coffee are the stuff of legends, but we do know that as the magical beans spread around the world, coffeehouses became a thing, too. They’ve always been places to listen to stories and music; to talk about news and politics. Before mass media became widely accessible, they were places to learn about the rest of the world.

Fast-forward a few hundred years to 2021 and our hyper-connected, global culture. Los Angeles-based entrepreneur Simone Ispahani is, like many of us, fuelled by coffee.

But she had a different kind of awakening when she learnt that 40.3 million people around the world are victims of modern-day slavery, and more than 70% of them are women and girls.

Put simply, human trafficking is the business of stealing freedom for profit. It takes many forms, including sexual exploitation, forced labor, forced marriage and being forced to work to pay a debt.

When Simone learned about the crisis of human trafficking, she couldn’t “unsee” it. She was determined to take action. So she found a way to connect her love of coffee with her passion for social justice. Simone founded Social Brew, an e-commerce coffee company with a mission as bracing as your morning brew. Social Brew will give 50% of all profits to selected non-profit partnerships to aid in the fight against human trafficking.

Simone has lived and studied on three continents, including some of the best places in the world for coffee and coffeehouses: The Netherlands; Sydney, Australia; Honolulu, Hawaii. She was sitting in a coffee shop off Kalakaua Avenue when she first dreamt of Social Brew.

Her commitment to working against human trafficking began when she was a student at Biola University. In her senior year, Simone co-led a 3-weeks mission trip to India working with women and children who had been trafficked. She volunteered for human rights organizations like the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST) the A21 Campaign, NEXUS Global Youth Summit and Creative Visions Foundation.

While a physical space is on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Social Brew is pressing forward with a range of extraordinary beans from Hawaii and Brazil, available exclusively in our online shop.

We hope you will enjoy our premium selection of coffees and think beyond the cup.