About K Bean Coffee Machines
Welcome from me, Paul, coffee enthusiast and owner of K Bean Coffee Machines, Melbourne. I’m a true enthusiast and I live the dream of running a business that is also my hobby.
My home barista journey started in 2010 when I bought my first coffee machine. I became obsessed by the coffee hobby. I built a coffee roaster, designed and built cold brew towers and played with all sorts of manual brewing toys. I also worked my way through numerous coffee machines and grinders.
I started dreaming about a coffee business and in 2014 I decided to give it a go. I named my business K Bean. The K comes from Kaldi - the Ethiopian goat herder who discovered coffee when he observed the spirited behavior of his bean eating goats.
In the beginning K Bean offered home roasted coffee beans along with manual brewing kits. I visited many homes to show locals how to make great coffee at home. My cool little kids joined in as well for a little fun.
I built a website and shifted my focus to coffee machines. My home barista journey along with many years on coffee forums (3000+ posts) put me in a great position to start a business and to grow it. Energy is the driver of a small business and energy is sky high when your business is also your hobby.
Initially this was a side business, with a day job as an engineering Project Manager at CSIRO. I operated the business from my home, with my double garage setup just like a retail shop. One day I decided to take the plunge and leave the day job. What a great decision. I really am having so much fun, with highlights being coffee trips to Ethiopia, Honduras and India
I opened a retail store at 1 Keys Street, Beaumaris in 2021 and recently celebrated a 10th birthday. 10 Years and 8000 happy customers. Wow! My son, Quinn, became my first employee back in 2021. Quinn learnt to make coffee at 9 years old and he now makes coffee every day. In 2022 Liam joined the team. He’s young and enthusiastic and truly nuts about coffee.
I love tinkering with mechanical things so I now get hands and service machines for my customers. For interstate customers I have established an Australia-wide network of authorised technicians.
Enjoy my website. There’s plenty of information here to help you as you set off on your home barista journey. A great place to start is with my Coffee Machine Buying Guide. And let me give you a pre-emptive “thanks” for choosing to join me (Paul), Quinn, Liam and K Bean Coffee Machines as you set off on your own home barista journey.