From constant failing to success: How Platō Coffee took over SA
Failure did not stop Platō Coffee co-founder Stephan Bredell - it just gave him more fuel to chase after his dreams.
Life is all about collecting dots, and if you want to be successful in life, you need to collect a few "failing dots" along the road.
Stephan Bredell has been connecting the dots ever since the first business he started after university failed spectacularly.
It's hard to believe that the man behind one of South Africa's most loved brands, Platō Coffee, had not one but eight business failures.
He co-founded the company with his brother, Petrus, in 2019 with just one container café. Nearly seven years later, there's a Platō Coffee on just about every other corner of Johannesburg, and dozens more across the country.
In just a few weeks, they will be opening a location in London.
Stephan recently opened up about his amazing, but rocky, road to success in an interview on 'The Inside Show'.
"People see Platō now, and they think, 'How did you do this in six years?', but it's a 15-year story or 20-year story of failures," he said.
It was during these many years of failures that the CEO achieved the building blocks that would one day make him a business powerhouse.
He uses a 'dots' analogy to explain how collecting knowledge and life experiences helped him make meaningful connections on his journey.
"How do you collect dots? The dots are like food for your brain, and if there are no dots in your brain, your brain can't connect anything. So, for me, what are dots? Meeting new people, getting out of your comfort zone and reading."
"One of the best dots to collect is a 'failing dot', and that's been the story of my life. Luckily, Platō worked out," Stephan added. "And just putting yourself out there. I think that has always been my approach, to rather try and fail and just try again."
READ: Emma Grede: From university dropout to billion dollar empire
Connecting the dots of success
It was more than just luck that helped Platō Coffee take over South Africa. In the words of billionaire talk show host Oprah Winfrey, "luck is preparation meeting the moment of opportunity".
Stephan would go home after his corporate 9-5 job to work on his business ideas late into the night. From a shisanyama franchise and sunglasses brand to a bakery, he tried it all.
Then it happened - all the dots connected. Everything he learned from his failed business attempts helped him build one of the fastest-growing coffee chains in South Africa.
His wife Corlia, a coffee aficionado, is the inspiration behind the brand. "I was like, 'If my wife drinks a lot of coffee, I'm sure there are other people's wives that also drink a lot of coffee."
Stephan also noticed that the speciality coffee scene was "very snobbish". He wanted to change the game: speciality coffee at scale without being snobbish.
Something that caters to the "fancy pants" coffee lovers, but also someone who is starting out on their coffee connoisseur journey and just wants a medium cappuccino with four syrup pumps.
"I think South Africans have a sweet tooth," he joked. "Especially Afrikaans people, you know, when you think of melktert and koeksisters."
Customers are equally impressed by Platō's clean, minimalist interior design as they are by its coffee. Stephan calls it the iStore of coffee shops.
The warm and inviting interior is intentional. The Bredell brothers wanted Platō to "serve exceptional coffee in places that feel like home".
When life throws you lemons, make lemonade or coffee. Stephan chose the latter, and now he is on his way to becoming Mzansi's 'King of Coffee'.
Watch Stephan Bredell's full interview with 'The Inside Show' on YouTube below.
Listen to Jacaranda FM:
- 94.2
- Jacaranda FM App
- http://jacarandafm.com
- DStv 858/ OpenView 602
Follow us on social media:
Image credit: YouTube/The Inside Show