Photos by Nik Janev.
It’s fair to say almost everyone who works in the creative industries has a side project incubating in their dreams. But DT strategist Athan Didaskalou has actually made his happen with the launch of Three Thousand Thieves, a monthly coffee subscription. Every month he and his team hunt down and curate Melbourne’s best artisan roasters, and deliver the coffee straight to subscribers’ doors.
Like all the best ideas, it was prompted by first-hand observation. Whether it’s fetishising the humble brunch or waiting two hours a night for a new dessert degustation pop-up, Melburnians have a passion for food culture and love to discover and try new things. And in turn, that creativity is expressing itself in how we cook. But Ath realised this sense of discovery never really extended to the coffee we make in our own kitchens.
“When you make coffee at home, it’s often only ever with the one blend from the one brand,” he says. “It’s either purchased from a place close to work or home, or, you have an emotional bond with that brand and that’s why you continue to purchase it.”
But playing it safe means missing out, because Melbourne is a coffee-roasting hub. Rarely do you find so many artisan roasters within a city, Ath says. The problem is that their exposure is often niche. “Three Thousand Thieves acts as a marketing tool for these niche brands, exposing themselves to a larger coffee loving audience. The result is connecting Melbourne’s best roasters to an audience who were still stuck buying Lavazza by empowering them with local knowledge and lowering the barrier to try it.”
Before DT, Ath had been in hospitality his whole life, including at a small coffee roaster in North Balwyn.
Of course, having the insight, passion and the experience means nothing if you don’t get the idea off the ground. Though he realises he is not the first person to discover this, launching a business was actually a lot harder than he anticipated. “Essentially, I became my own worst client. All the things I usually recommend to in my day job came second on my list of priorities. I obsessed about sales, packaging, reducing costs, identifying the right suppliers, and at the same time ensuring these factors kept my business model profitable.”
But he has found that the clients he works with at DT enjoy talking shop with him. “It’s been great to discuss accounting issues and marketing efforts with clients who give you their own opinions about what works and what to focus on.”
Now those same DT clients have become some of Ath’s first customers. And so have his bosses, who love his idea. “DT harbours a culture of entrepreneurship, and working in that environment definitely rubs off on you,” Ath says, though he could just be saying this to suck up. (He admits to using the company printers “once or twice,” thanks to DT’s supportive MD Brian Vella.)
How does he juggle working full time and doing all this on the side? He’s built some balance directly into his business model. Since it’s based on a monthly cycle, Ath and his sister Anthea print and pack the orders over the month, and dispatch the coffee the day after it’s roasted. That means the workload is spread out and, touch wood, there are only a few late nights. “With the right business model, you can do something a little fun on the side and maintain your sanity.”
What’s next? Ath would like to grow Three Thousand Thieves organically. Interestingly, he identifies the biggest area for growth as the ‘curation via subscription’ business model itself. ”Melbourne has such a unique food culture: the people, the flavours, and the opportunity to dabble in diversity is limitless. I want to connect that with the digital world, and get more people involved with the passion for food in this city.”
The next Three Thousand Thieves delivery is this Thursday. Mention Nextness when you subscribe and get a month on Ath!