Brewing Culture:How Hermanos Brings the Heart of Colombia to London

Commercial property lawyer Antonia Frangakis sat down with Victor Gamboa, co‑founder of Colombian coffee roasters Hermanos. Founded in 2018 by brothers Victor and Santiago Gamboa and long‑term friend Adnan, Hermanos was created to bring the warmth of Colombian culture to the UK through one of its most famous exports: coffee. 

Here, Victor discusses how his Colombian heritage has shaped the journey of the business, the challenges of scaling as a small‑batch operation, and why storytelling sits at the heart of everything Hermanos does. 

Antonia Frangakis: Hermanos started as a pop‑up in Walthamstow in 2018. What inspired the brand, and how has your Colombian heritage shaped its journey? 

Victor Gamboa: One of the things that inspired us was wanting to bring Colombian coffee to the UK properly. When we started with pop‑ups, we knew the most important thing was getting people to try the coffee. 

Santiago and I are both from Colombia, and we always wanted to create a place that focused entirely on specialty Colombian coffee and showcased the diversity Colombia offers. That was the starting point. 

The pop‑up was a way to test that idea and see what people thought. The reaction was overwhelming. People tried the coffee, loved it, and from there things grew slowly, little by little. That Colombian heritage – knowing the coffee, the farms and the culture – is at the heart of everything we’ve done since. 

AF: How do you balance small‑batch craft with scaling across London and beyond? 

VG: Growth only works for us if quality is never compromised. One way we achieve that is by investing heavily in equipment and processes that allow us to scale while maintaining control. 

We invested in a Loring roaster, which gives us excellent quality control. Every batch we roast is tested, whether it’s six kilos or 15 kilos. If something isn’t right, we simply don’t sell it. 

We started with a one‑kilo roaster and now operate a 16‑kilo roaster, but we still roast little and often. We carefully control roasting days and freshness, and we don’t sell coffee in our stores that’s more than three or four weeks from the roasting date. 

That approach – roasting frequently, testing everything and prioritising freshness – allows us to grow while maintaining consistency across our stores and online. 

AF: What makes your approach to sourcing and roasting different, and how do you ensure quality and traceability across every cup? 

VG: We do all our sourcing ourselves. We travel to Colombia three or four times a year, visiting farms, meeting farmers and understanding their land, families and processes. 

That gives us a very clear picture of quality at farm level. Specialty coffee is all about discipline and systems. Many of the farmers we work with don’t have big infrastructure, but they produce incredible coffee because their processes are so strong. 

We cup the coffee at origin, and when it arrives in the UK, we cup it again to ensure it’s the same coffee. Sometimes what you taste at origin isn’t what arrives, so that consistency check is essential. Because we work directly with farmers, we have full traceability and know exactly where every coffee comes from. 

AF: How do you support Colombian farmers and communities through direct trade and sustainability initiatives? 

VG: We work directly with farmers and remove intermediaries from the process. We pay based on quality rather than the C market price, so if the market price drops, that doesn’t affect what we pay. 

That money goes straight to the farmers, allowing them to invest in their farms and families. We’ve seen farmers send children to school and university, who then return to the farms with new knowledge. Farming is becoming a viable and dignified way of life again. 

From a sustainability perspective, many farmers now grow coffee under shade using native trees, which increases biodiversity and reduces the need for pesticides. They also recycle water used during processing instead of polluting rivers, helping secure long‑term coffee production. 

AF: What role does storytelling play in connecting customers to the origin of your coffee? 

VG: Storytelling is everything for us. Every bag of coffee has a name – the farmer, the farm or the region. All our coffees are single origin, and we don’t blend. 

That creates a direct connection. Customers know exactly where their coffee comes from. We’ve also brought farmers to the UK so they can see the end customer and hear feedback firsthand. 

When customers see that authenticity, they’re happy to pay a little more because they know their purchase makes a genuine impact, both in Colombia and here in the UK. 

That Colombian heritage – knowing the coffee, the farms,

 and the culture – is at the heart of everything we’ve done.
 

AF: How do you create a memorable customer experience, both online and in‑store? 

VG: In our stores, we try to recreate a bit of Colombia through music, artwork and atmosphere. We want the spaces to feel relaxed and welcoming. 

We host tastings, festivals and events, and we stand behind our products. If a customer isn’t happy, we replace the coffee immediately – no questions asked. That mindset runs through everything we do. 

Online, we treat customers the same way: next‑day delivery, personalised service and subscriptions for convenience, while still handling individual requests with care. 

AF: What trends are shaping the future of specialty coffee, and how is Hermanos adapting? 

VG: Coffee is constantly evolving, from new varietals to fermentation and processing techniques. Colombia’s geography gives us incredible potential, and we’re always looking for rare and exciting coffees. 

We rotate our coffees every three to six months so customers are always discovering something new. We also innovate with formats like cold brew, with each store producing its own so there’s always freshness and variety. 

AF: What’s next for Hermanos? 

VG: At the end of last year, we launched franchising, which allows us to grow while showcasing more Colombian farmers and buying more coffee from them. 

London and the UK remain big opportunities, but we’re also exploring international growth as the next chapter for the business. 

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