Brisbane coffee entrepreneurs Penny (’92) and Peter Wolff shared their tips for success with business professionals, St Margaret’s staff, alumni and students at last Wednesday’s Professional Women’s Network Breakfast.
The dynamic duo, who have carved a niche in the realm of specialty coffee in Brisbane, have created several distinct brands in the Wolff pack, including Dandelion and Driftwood, Wolff Coffee Roasters and Queen of Pops.
Penny said “innovation” was the linchpin for their business success.
“We don’t replicate something twice. We try and enter the market with something quite new and innovative and produce something that’s different,” she said.
Peter, who is a veritable pioneer in the coffee industry and one of only a few master roasters in Australia, echoed Penny’s words, saying “innovation is at the heart of what we do”.
“It allows us to influence to some degree the market but also allows us to tap into emerging trends in tea and coffee,” Peter said.
Some of their unique selling propositions have included pioneering a unique coffee experience at Dandelion and Driftwood where every coffee was served with tasting notes.
Their Queen of Pops brand on the other hand was borne out of a desire to understand younger consumers. “We wanted to tap into the millennials and created a brand where we did things differently with coffee,” Penny said.
The Queen of Pops menu includes inventive and exciting new taste creations including coffee soft serve and coffee popsicles as well as nitro cold brew.
Wolff Coffee Roasters was established as a roasting and wholesale brand and the pair have also furthered diversified their offering with the Big Bad Wolff Espresso Bar and the Wolff College of Coffee.
Penny and Peter shared their tips to achieving success in business which included investing in people, giving energy and acting with intention, focusing on the small details, being disciplined yet flexible, selling your vision and having appreciation.
They attribute much of their success to being “yes” people and embracing every opportunity.
The audience included several Year 10 Economics and Entrepreneurial Studies students who were no doubt inspired by Penny’s wisdom for starting a business.
“Identify gaps in the market, take the risk and go for it,” she said.
The powerful partnership also revealed that mentors had an important role to play in each of their journeys, so much so, they have created a mentoring program within their own business to support staff.
Valuing the importance of social responsibility, Penny and Peter spend time giving back to the communities that provide or support their producers. Together they have worked within the communities in these countries, particularly investing in education through the supply of water tanks, school resources and funding for construction.
The 100 strong audience was also treated to a Wolff Coffee espresso and guided through a sensory tasting experience with Penny.
Thank you to all who attended the second of our four 2019 events.
St Margaret’s also thanks our partners who supported the event including the Professional Women’s Network Associate Partners Pitcher Partners and McCullough Robertson, and Supporting Partners Downer, NAB, Clear Insurance and Programmed Property Services.
All proceeds from this event will be directed to the St Margaret’s Foundation Endowment Fund which supports current and future families experiencing hardship, including those living in rural and regional areas.
For a gallery of images from the event, visit the St Margaret’s Facebook page.
Listen to the audio recording of Penny and Peter’s presentation here.
The next Professional Women’s Network breakfast will be held on Tuesday 20 August with guest speaker Julieanne Alroe, Chair of Infrastructure Australia. Click here for further information and tickets.