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From 1 Cafe to 12 Co’s: JWC’s Coffee Ecosystem Play

Nelson Lai, Founder & CEO, JWC Global | Michael Tan, Wholesale Director, JWC Roastery

19-May-25 10:00

From 1 Cafe to 12 Co’s: JWC’s Coffee Ecosystem Play

In 2009, JWC started as a small café in Johor with just 16 seats. Today, it has grown into an eight-figure, multi-company coffee group with retail outlets, a coffee academy, a roastery, and a fast-growing wholesale business. In this episode, we speak with Nelson Lai, Founder & CEO of JWC Global, and Michael Tan, Wholesale Director of JWC Roastery, about this company's journey from bootstrapped beginnings to building an integrated coffee ecosystem.

We dive into:

  • How JWC grew from a café into an 8-figure, multi-vertical business.

  • The surprising profitability of their coffee academy.

  • Their wholesale growth strategy, from five to seven figures.

  • How JWC tackles supply chain risks through direct sourcing.

  • Expansion ambitions, including exports, regional markets, and future fundraising.

Discover how JWC balances coffee craft, business scale, and people development to grow Malaysia’s homegrown coffee presence at home and abroad.

Produced by: Roshan Kanesan

Presented by: Roshan Kanesan


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Categories:  marketseconomymanagingentrepreneurs

Tags:  coffee businessspecialty coffeewholesaleentrepreneurshipmade in malaysia





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