Just Grace is a non-profit company (NPC) that has been operating in Langa, Cape Town’s oldest township, for 14 years. It focuses on youth development through high school skills programmes, social work and support in schools and the wider community. To reduce its reliance on donors and create a revenue stream, Just Grace has set up businesses linked to its skills training. One of these businesses is Cela Coffee, a micro-roastery that supplies large mass-market retailers such as Checkers. The idea is to earn revenue in ways that stay close to Just Grace’s mission and help pay for its training.

Growth, however, brings trade-offs, as Delphino, the executive director of Just Grace explains: there is no separate team to run the various ventures, and Cela Coffee is already turning away requests from more Checkers stores because it lacks staff. It also isn’t yet sure how viable and profitable the business would be on its own. A key question is whether Cela Coffee should stay within Just Grace, or become a spin-off with its own staff and board. Space is another limitation: in Langa, property is hard to find. The roastery shares a 150-square-metre skills centre and only roasts in the afternoons. A dedicated full-time space would need a clear case for the investment and its return.

Delphino's vision is for Cela Coffee to help fund Just Grace without losing focus on its core mission. More broadly, he wants it to show that townships can produce high-quality products and inspire communities like Langa.