Rishwin Devaya quit his job to revive his family’s century-old coffee estate in Coorg, Karnataka, and build Riverside Coffee, a direct-to-consumer brand. The venture now generates ₹2 crore in annual revenue, growing 30% year-on-year, according to livemint.com. Devaya’s shift from selling coffee beans to commodity markets to selling branded coffee directly to consumers marks a significant transformation for the family business.
The Riverside Coffee brand began in 1898 with Devaya’s great-great-grandfather, who settled on a part of the family estate. After working in the wine industry, Devaya was inspired by the vineyard-to-bottle model and sought to apply a similar estate-to-cup approach for coffee. This involved taking control of processing, roasting, branding, and sales rather than just cultivation. Devaya described the transition as moving away from a predictable business model to a more involved, brand-driven one.
This move reflects a broader trend in agricultural businesses seeking to capture more value by building consumer-facing brands. By focusing on the D2C model, Riverside Coffee bypasses traditional commodity markets and exporters, allowing for higher margins and direct customer engagement. The brand’s 30% annual growth highlights the potential for legacy estates to modernize and compete in India’s growing specialty coffee market.
Riverside Coffee’s success illustrates the viability of estate-to-cup models in India’s coffee sector. The brand’s ₹2 crore revenue milestone and consistent growth demonstrate the impact of integrating cultivation with branding and direct sales. Devaya’s approach may inspire other growers to explore similar transformations in their businesses.