What Redemption Roasters does

Redemption Roasters is a UK specialty coffee company headquartered at King's Cross, London, operating 11 owned coffee shops across central London (Bloomsbury, King's Cross, Piccadilly, Victoria, Broadgate, Covent Garden, Dulwich Village, Hampstead Heath, Holborn, Islington, Tottenham Court Road) alongside a wholesale B2B business, a direct-to-consumer e-commerce storefront, consumer and office coffee subscriptions, and a roastery relocated to Wembley in December 2025. Its product portfolio centres on four house blends (The Block, The Yard, The Roll Call, The Governor), a rotating seasonal single-origin range (Colombia, Burundi, Rwanda, Brazil), Nespresso-compatible pods, brewing equipment and accessories (Sage, AeroPress, Comandante, Baratza), and adjacent categories (Good & Proper tea, Blendsmiths hot chocolate/chai, Perfect Ted matcha, gift bundles), distributed through retail, e-commerce, wholesale, and tiered office subscriptions.

The company's defining capability is a prison-based barista training and employment pipeline built on an original 2016 partnership with the UK Ministry of Justice: it runs barista academies inside HMP High Down, HMP Wandsworth, HMP Downview, HMP Wormwood Scrubs, HMYOI Aylesbury, and previously HMP The Mount, feeding trained Participants into its own shops and wholesale partner locations. The company reports 0% known reoffending among employed Participants versus a 38% national average, 91% 90-day retention versus 58% industry average, 37.5% of shop workforce being Participants as of April 2026, and 89% of coffee contracted in 2025 meeting one of three sourcing pillars (rehabilitation, sustainable initiatives via Caravela, female economic empowerment via Raw Material CIC). It is B Corp certified and was awarded the King's Award for Enterprise in May 2026 for promoting opportunity through social mobility.

Redemption Roasters monetises through unit-priced retail coffee and equipment (e.g., The Block at £11.20/250g, Sage Oracle Jet at £1,699.95), recurring consumer coffee subscriptions (weekly/fortnightly/monthly), tiered B2B office coffee subscriptions with wholesale discounts of 10%–20%+ and £3.05 per order contributed to the social mission, and a wholesale channel serving independent cafes, corporate caterers (including Rothschild & Co via Lexington/Elior and Louie Louie Group since 2018), offices, and co-working spaces. The company is incorporated as Catimor Ltd in England and Wales, was co-founded in 2015 by Ted Rosner and Max Dubiel (previously co-founders of Black Sheep Coffee), and has raised approximately £1.3M via a December 2023 Crowdcube round from 312 retail investors alongside an earlier Clearly Social Angels round.

Name

Redemption Roasters

Legal name

Catimor Ltd

Website

https://redemptionroasters.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Redemption Roasters is a UK specialty coffee company operating 11 London coffee shops, wholesale B2B supply, e-commerce, and subscriptions, with a social mission to reduce reoffending by training and employing prison leavers as baristas through academies inside UK prisons.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Coffee

NAICS

Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Manufacturing (311520), Soft Drink Manufacturing (312111)

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee Roasters with Cafe (Roastery Cafes) (THAFADAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Coffee Roasting & Grinding (AFAFADAB)

Keywords

• Specialty coffee roasting
• Ethical coffee sourcing
• Coffee subscription service
• Wholesale coffee supply
• Prison rehabilitation training

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Retail Coffee Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of roasted coffee beans (250g, 1kg), pods, and brewing equipment through the e-commerce storefront. One-time purchase model with per-unit pricing.
2. Coffee Subscriptions: Recurring subscription deliveries of roasted coffee (whole beans, ground, or pods) on weekly, fortnightly, or monthly cadence. Free shipping included. Gift subscription variants available for 3, 6, or 12 deliveries.
3. Office Coffee Subscriptions: B2B workplace coffee subscription with tiered wholesale pricing based on employee count (5-25 employees: 10% discount, 26-50: 20% discount, 50+: bespoke pricing). £3.05 per order contributes to social mission.
4. Wholesale Coffee & Equipment: B2B wholesale supply of coffee, espresso machinery (Faema, La Marzocco, Victoria Arduino, Slayer, Eversys), installation, barista training, and ongoing servicing to independent cafes, restaurants, hotels, corporate caterers, and offices. Tiered pricing system with account management.
5. Brewing Equipment & Accessories: Sale of brewing equipment including AeroPress, Moka pots, grinders (Comandante, Baratza), kettles (Timemore, Felicita), Sage espresso machines, filter papers, and accessories. One-time purchase model with prices ranging from £5.90 to £1,699.95.
6. Training Services: Half-day barista training programmes at the Wembley roastery running on the first Friday of each month. Includes roastery tour, espresso understanding, milk texturing, latte art, and drink building. Provided to wholesale partners and potentially other clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Redemption Roasters is a UK specialty coffee company that roasts coffee at its Wembley roastery and sells roasted coffee beans, pods, tea, brewing equipment, and gift sets through 11 London coffee shops and an e-commerce storefront. It also operates a B2B wholesale channel supplying coffee, espresso machinery, installation, and barista training to independent cafes, restaurants, hotels, corporate caterers, and offices. Its products are differentiated by a social impact mission of training and employing prison leavers through in-prison barista academies.

Product overview

Redemption Roasters is a UK-based specialty coffee company operating 11 London coffee shops and a wholesale business, with a social mission to reduce reoffending by training and employing prison leavers. Its product portfolio centers on specialty coffee across multiple formats: four signature house blends (The Block, The Yard, The Roll Call, The Governor) sold as whole bean, ground, or pod formats; a rotating seasonal single origin range (currently featuring coffees from Colombia, Burundi, Rwanda, and Brazil); and Nespresso-compatible pods in three roast profiles. The company also retails brewing equipment and accessories (Sage espresso machines, AeroPress, grinders, kettles, filter papers), tea from Good & Proper, and hot chocolate/chai blends from Blendsmiths. Subscription services include consumer coffee subscriptions (with a Roasters Roulette rotating option) and office coffee subscriptions with tiered wholesale pricing. Wholesale B2B services extend to coffee supply, machinery provision, barista training, and account management for cafes, offices, and catering businesses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Block
• The Yard
• The Roll Call
• The Governor
• Single Origin Coffee Range
• Coffee Pods
• Roasters Roulette
• Coffee Subscription
• Office Coffee Subscription
• Wholesale Coffee Supply
• Brewing Equipment & Accessories
• Good & Proper Tea
• Blendsmiths Tea Blends
• Gift Sets & Gift Cards
• Barista Training Courses

Quantifiable outcome

• 0% known reoffending rate among employed Participants vs 38% national average
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and supporting.

• CaravelacoreTechnology or IntegrationCoffee sourcing partner working with farmers to improve farm yield and reduce carbon emissions. Caravela pays farmers up front and has an on-the-ground team supporting producers. Collaboration extends Redemption Roasters' rehabilitation mission to coffee-producing communities, including a project in Colombia supporting farmers previously involved in paramilitary groups transitioning to legal coffee production.
• Raw Material CICcoreTechnology or IntegrationCoffee sourcing partner that reinvests all profits beyond operational costs back into the communities from which coffees come. Works alongside Muraho Trading Co. in Rwanda to help co-operatives increase quality production, fetch higher prices, and access new markets. Key partner for Rwandan coffee sourcing via Gisheke Washing Station.
• MulmarmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerNationwide service partner with 150 engineers across the UK providing machinery maintenance and technical support for wholesale clients' espresso equipment. Works alongside Redemption Roasters' account management to ensure high uptime for partner coffee shops.
• Good & PropersupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerTea partner supplying specialty teas for inclusion in Redemption Roasters' tea range (English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Hibiscus, Jade Green, Peppermint). Good & Proper teas are sold through the online shop and wholesale to B2B partners.
• BlendsmithssupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerHot chocolate and chai blend partner supplying Blendsmiths Dark Chocolate Blend (£8.50) and Masala Chai Blend (£12.00) for retail and wholesale. Products stocked in online shop and through wholesale B2B channels.
• Perfect TedsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerMatcha partner supplying matcha products alongside Redemption Roasters' coffee and tea offerings for online retail and wholesale B2B supply.
• CAP UKsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with CAP UK, the organisation helping prisoners through art. CAP UK provides the artwork that decorates Redemption Roasters' shop walls, featuring creations by prison residents.
• Ministry of JusticecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment body that initially approached co-founders Ted and Max in 2016 to establish a prison-based roastery, leading to the founding of Redemption Roasters. The partnership enables barista training academies inside UK prisons (HMP High Down, HMP Wandsworth, HMP Downview, HMP Wormwood Scrubs, HMYOI Aylesbury, HMP The Mount) and the unique social impact model.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Black Sheep Coffee: UK specialty coffee chain co-founded by Redemption Roasters' founders (Ted Rosner and Max Dubiel) in 2013. Operates a comparable retail coffee shop model in the UK with strong brand identity and product-led growth.
• Square Mile Coffee Roasters: London-based specialty coffee roaster with strong wholesale presence and DTC e-commerce, supplying cafes, restaurants, and home consumers with single origin and blend coffee. Closest comparable on roasting, wholesale, and DTC operations.
• Monmouth Coffee: Iconic London specialty coffee roaster and cafe operator with multiple London shops and a strong wholesale/DTC presence. Comparable on roastery-cafe retail model and specialty coffee quality positioning.
• Workshop Coffee: London-based specialty coffee roaster and cafe chain with multiple sites and B2B wholesale supply. Closely comparable on multi-site London specialty retail plus roastery-plus-wholesale model.
• Caravan Coffee: London specialty coffee roaster and cafe operator with multiple sites, restaurants, and wholesale supply. Comparable on London specialty retail footprint and roastery-backed wholesale operations.
• Notes Coffee: London-based specialty coffee roaster and multi-site cafe operator with strong wholesale and DTC presence. Comparable on London specialty retail expansion and roastery-plus-wholesale structure.
• Grind & Co: London specialty coffee and cocktail bar brand with multiple sites, retail coffee products, and DTC subscriptions. Comparable on London specialty retail, branded coffee product sales, and subscription model.

Broad incumbents

• Caffè Nero: Established UK specialty-leaning coffee chain with hundreds of UK sites. Comparable on UK coffee retail scale and shop economics, though broader incumbent with less mission-driven differentiation.
• Pret a Manger: Large UK coffee and food chain with deep London presence and growing subscription/loyalty programmes. Comparable on London coffee shop scale and subscription GTM, though broader incumbent focused on speed and convenience.

Others

• The Change Foundation: UK charity using sport to engage prisoners and reduce reoffending. Thematically relevant as a comparator for impact-driven programmes in the UK criminal justice space, though not a coffee or commercial peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/redemptionroast
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/redemption-roasters

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Redemption Roasters