We are changing the way people buy coffee, in 3 easy steps! SIPPY is the latest entrant in local commerce with a focus on specialty coffee, making it easy for coffee lovers in the region to search and discover great coffeeshops and coffees. Our vision is to connect local commerce, increasing consumer buying power while driving more business to local merchants through price and discovery.
Note: We do not do pre-orders of coffee. You get your coffee on the spot, we want you to enter the cafes and connect with an amazing list of participating coffeeshops.
What or who is the inspiration behind our startup?
The idea that people are willing to commit to a daily habit is the inspiration behind creating SIPPY, which offers a prepaid subscription service to coffee drinkers from a network of independent coffee shops in the UAE.
Tell us why your business is the best thing since sliced bread?
We want SIPPY to be the destination that our coffee loving customers check first when they are out and about, the place they start when they’re looking to buy coffee anywhere and anytime. By growing an independent network of local specialty coffeeshops, SIPPY can leverage on its scale to provide coffee drinkers with more savings and help them discover what to do drink.
Who is your hero in the restaurant business – the one you aspire to be?
There are over 1,000 local coffeeshops in the UAE serving coffee and for the most part are yet to be connected to and enabled by technology. And they’re all looking for customers. The vast majority of these Merchants aren’t marketers by trade. They’re largely living out their dreams. We salute them, support them and want the whole community to know about their aspirations.
What is your favorite dish on the menu? And why?
Personally, I am V60 pour over coffee addict. Many hidden coffeeshops have opened my eyes to how skilled their baristas are on top of the fine quality coffee they serve. It’s been a beautiful learning experience seeing the whole picture come together. My personal favorite coffees are the Burundi V60 at Double B on City Walk 1, or the Ethiopian V60 at Emirati Coffee on Dar Al Wasl Mall. Rafi is a huge fan of the Aeropress at Café Rider in Al Quoz. All hidden gems, and so many more out there we would not do this question justice.
What lessons have you learned along the way that you would like to share with other FoodPreneurs?
We learned that you have to dial down your passion sometimes to allow yourself to communicate why the concept works, but that comes with a little experience. Throwing up all the information upfront can get confusing and coffeeshops may not share the same sentiment in the early stages until they see the SIPPY experience unravel. On another note, we’d definitely recommend speaking to new entrants as opposed to big names set in their ways who don’t feel they can benefit from our platform. As a small startup, SIPPY wants to work with those who believe in supporting the community and that it is a mutually beneficial arrangement. The specialty market is booming right now, and if the community pulls together, great things will happen.
Download the SIPPY app in the Apple and Play stores.
Where can we find you?
We are located at In5 Tech in knowledge village and at Chalhoub’s offices at D3. We’re mobile so we are constantly on the road engaging with coffeeshops and coffee lovers! It’s very likely our customers have seen us at their favorite coffeeshops.