Morning Fresh Kava Bar – A success story from seasonal work to entrepreneurship

October 23, 2024 9:45 pm | Posted in Business News | Share now TwitterFacebook

By Clifton Kissel.

The owner of Morning Fresh Kava Bar (MFKB), Kency Atel, who participated in the Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP), has referred to kava as ‘gold’ after he began producing kava juice in the Freshwota 4 area of Port Vila.

After participating in Australia’s SWP in 2021, where he worked as a supervisor picking oranges and raspberries, Mr. Atel found himself stuck in Australia due to the COVID-19 lockdown, spending a year and a half there.

Upon his return to Vanuatu in mid-2023, he decided to invest in a business by starting a kava juice venture in Port Vila.

Observing the high demand for kava, he withdrew from the labour scheme to focus entirely on his business. The owner collaborates with farmers from his home island of Ambrym, arranging for them to send him kava, which he sells on their behalf, paying them once the sales are complete.

“The business has been so successful that we now prepare between 50kg and 60kg of kava every night, operating seven days a week,” Mr. Atel said. “Despite this effort, there is still a shortage of kava, indicating a big market opportunity for farmers.”

MFKB has also expanded its reach, recently opening a sales point near Ulei Primary School in North Efate, supplying more than 10 plastic containers of 1.5 litres of kava daily.

Mr. Atel began by employing three youths from the Freshwota community, and as the demand for kava grew, he expanded his staff to eight young workers.

He encourages the youth working at MFKB to save their earnings, obtain passports, and participate in overseas labour schemes, hoping they will return to Vanuatu with the skills and funds to start their own businesses.

One of his employees, Daniel Sasco, is already set to travel to New Zealand for work, having completed his paperwork with the help of his salary from MFKB.

This initiative reflects Mr. Atel’s broader goal of supporting his community through entrepreneurship and creating a sustainable local economy centred around kava, which he considers ‘gold’.