Safai Makes a Difference

There’s nothing better than that first delicious sip of coffee in the morning. And that contentment is even sweeter when it’s a cup of Safai. This signature coffee is sourced from an expert coffee roaster and independent supplier who helps to uplift the lives of its farmers through its grassroots organization.

Owners, Members, and guests staying at U.S.-based Marriott Vacation Club^®, Sheraton^® Vacation Club, and Westin® Vacation Club resorts can enjoy Safai’s great-tasting coffee, all while knowing they are helping to support the farmers’ livelihoods.

HOW OUR BREWING PARTNERSHIP WAS BORN

The Marriott Vacation Clubs™ partnership with the Kentucky-based company began in 2009, when the vacation ownership company was looking to enhance its coffee offerings across its continental U.S. in-room resorts.

Salvatore Midili, assistant vice president of procurement at Marriott Vacations Worldwide, says it’s the quality of Safai’s product that has made it so successful. They’ve found that people want to bring the taste of vacation home with them.

“Many Owners express interest in purchasing the coffee after tasting it,” Midili says. “They reach out to Safai and say, ‘I am staying at this property, and I love your coffee.’”

Following the success of the in-villa offerings, the company decided to expand the coffee endeavors into Brewcoast Coffee Co. shops, with locations at Marriott’s Oceana Palms and Marriott’s Grande Vista in Florida. Safai is now also available in retail stores Kroger and Whole Foods in the Louisville area.

“Safai, with its coffee quality, was the winner,” Midili says of the brand selection for Brewcoast. “Their coffee quality really hit the note.”

MORE THAN JUST COFFEE: PLANTING THE SEEDS OF SAFAI’S SUCCESS

Mike Safai, founder of Safai Coffee, is passionate about directly supporting coffee farmers, especially the community in Marcala, Honduras. Through his inspiring philanthropic work, he has been pivotal in changing the course of the coffee growers’ lives.

In 2013, during a visit to the farms in Marcala, Safai and his team witnessed the impact of coming agricultural crisis that could impact not only the farmers, but the coffee industry at large. Crops were being devastated by a disease known as “coffee rust.” The fungus — exacerbated by climate change — destroys coffee plant leaves and forces farmers to abandon their farms.

Safai says he found it would only cost about $3,800 to get the trees, organic fertilizer, and other materials needed to save 15 farms. This would allow families to continue living and working while the trees matured. But when the local rural cooperative called COMSA was willing to match his donations, they were able to save 30 farms. 

“So, we sent them $60,000 and in two years, [the farms] were unbelievable, healthy, and flourishing,” Safai says.

A new foundation was born. Safai founded the Safai Arabica Farm Assistance Initiative (SAFAI) Foundation to support coffee growers and their families.

The shift from conventional to organic farming with the new plants proved highly successful. It has since expanded to 620 farms — and has inspired other regions and countries, such as Costa Rica, to adopt similar practices. And now, in addition to working to save farms, SAFAI is helping to provide access to health care, education, and economic opportunities.

For every case of coffee Safai sells, it earmarks money for the foundation.

As the crops do better, the community can reinvest into their own wellness.

“We started raising money for the [SAFAI] Foundation, and Marriott is one of our biggest contributors,” Safai explains.

SIPS FOR SAFAI GOOD

Since partnering with Safai, Marriott Vacations Worldwide (MVW) has raised more than $100,000 for the SAFAI Foundation.

MVW in-room offerings have funded several projects in rural areas. These include a school cafeteria equipped for hot meals, a 4×4 truck for rural emergency transportation, and ongoing hospital supplies. A life-saving generator purchase is also planned.

Midili and other MVW leaders recently joined Safai to visit the coffee farms in Honduras to see firsthand the work being done in the community and where the coffee is grown.

“The contributions that MVW have made over the years through simply purchasing their coffee helped give resources to the farmers and the community out there to continue to build their infrastructure, because it’s in a really bad shape,” he says. “It’s the little things, like the new 4×4 vehicle, which can now be used by health care givers to visit chronically ill patients who are homebound or don’t have transportation in the surrounding remote mountain areas.”

Sustainability is another key aspect of the collaboration. MVW’s coffee program is 100 percent Rainforest Alliance Certified, supporting biodiversity conservation and sustainable livelihoods.

“Mike just had a passion to help these farmers stay sustainable,” Midili says. “These organic farmers are very small and nimble, but they produce some of the greatest high-end coffee.”

For Safai, he says his biggest reward comes in the relationship he’s made with the coffee growers themselves.

“For me,” says Safai, “that’s what is important, that I was lucky to touch people’s lives and change their lives.”