North End country's largest coffee roaster

Dhaka : North End Coffee Roasters is the market leader in the country's coffee business with 90 per cent share. What is surprising is that North End is not only a roaster but also the biggest supplier of coffee beans in the country.
Md Rajuan Hasan, CCO of North End Coffee Roasters said this while talking to The Bangladesh Monitor at the former's main branch at Pragati Sarani in the capital recently.     
"We are mainly a coffee bean supplier with the most number of coffee shops in the country," said Hasan, mentioning the yearly sale of coffee beans is about 72 tons to over 350 customers countrywide, from five star hotels to restaurants.   
North End not only provides coffee beans but also all sorts of solutions to establish a coffee shop, claimed the CCO.  
"We provide machines and training as well," he said, adding that North End has a coffee academy where they provide anyone interested with barista training. 
The coffee supplier also tags anyone wishing to establish coffee shops with suppliers for other amenities. 
The coffee North End supplies includes beans from Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Sumatra, Sumatra decaf, Guatemala, Espresso Roast, French Roast, and Vienna roast. 
There is another bean that North End is turning heads with is the hill tract blend. It is sourced from the Chattogram Hill Tracts. This is the first and only Bangladeshi blend North End has in its inventory. This has provided the farmers at hill tracts with more work opportunities to flourish more.     
The moto of North End as Hasan mentioned is "Craft great coffee, create great community." Meaning, North End works to establish a coffee culture in Bangladesh and it has successfully made coffee mainstream across the country. 
"We want new entrepreneurs to open their own coffee shops. For this, we want to support them. North End alone cannot create a coffee culture; we need a community for it. That's what we are working to build," said the CCO.  
North End has become a second home to coffee lovers in the capital. All its 10 outlets, each welcoming locals and foreigners alike, have become the most preferred place for hangouts, work and even meetings because of its top-notch ambient and service.   
As the lockdowns following the pandemic have ended, the business is picking up gradually, expressed Hasan. "However, amid the lockdown we have suffered just like others with only 30-40 per cent sales," he added.
Since reopening from August, till now, North End has been able to recover over 80 per cent of the business, Hasan mentioned. However, it will take another six months to one year to fully rebound from the pandemic losses, he explained.  
North End has several varieties of coffees - hot, cold and ice blended - while all of them are fan favourites, mostly.  
Among the best sellers, there are hazelnut latte, brownie mocha fredo, different milky coffees, cappuccino, some chocolaty drinks, hot chocolate, ice blended mocha fredo, vanilla crème fredo and many others. The coffees range from BDT 140 to BDT 460. 
And to complement the taste of coffees, the coffee shops also serve delicious toffees like croissants, brownies, cinnamon rolls, muffins, cheesecakes, bagels etc. These range from BDT 70 to BDT 195.
North End has recently launched mouthwatering breakfast sandwiches as well ranging from BDT 310 to BDT 425.
Recently, the coffee roasters have launched a new concept called Trujo- coffee in a tea bag - quite a revolution. 
"The prices are very reasonable as our aim is to grow a community of coffee lovers. Therefore, we always try to keep our prices pocket friendly for all."
Interestingly, North End is a Bangladeshi company run by an American management. They will be opening the next new branch at Uttara while they already have an outlet in even Cox's Bazar.
Eventually North End Coffee Roasters aspire to go international by opening branches abroad. "We aim to be the first Bangladeshi chain operating in foreign countries," concluded Rajuan Hasan.