Our Journey.

Named with our principles on our sleeve, Sanctuary Coffee has equipped coffee lovers since 2021 to enjoy and experience exceptional coffee while giving everything we can to animal charities.

Guided by the mantra of "Care To Be Different", our mission is to represent the coffee lovers who don't follow the crowd; the coffee farmers who pursue quality beyond standard; and our partnered charities who never give up no matter the obstacles life throws in front of them.

We are the underdogs who fund the dogs.

2019

A look behind the curtain.

Sometimes in life you're offered a glimpse of the reality that changes your understanding forever. For us, in the March of 2019, this is exactly what happened.

As graduates fresh out of university, Marcus and Rhian, both then 23, decided their first flat in London felt empty; and that perhaps rescuing a greyhound might be the thing we needed.

Whilst starting the adoption process, the pair researched day and night for the best way to bring a dog into their lives.

They knew that there are lots of dogs in the UK that need to be rehomed. What they didn't realise was that 'lots' is actually millions each year; and that almost all charities involved in rescues and rehoming are unable to apply for grants to help with the costs due to a lack of time, access or eligibility.

Countless stories of volunteers and rescue managers selling their personal belongings, remortgaging their houses or even skipping meals to help fund food and medicine for the animals left the pair feeling a sense of injustice.

2019

Pen to paper.

In November of 2019, Marcus resigned from his role of Head of Coffee at Redemption Roasters. The company worked behind the bars of a youth prison, offering training and education to prisoners in a bid to improve employability post-release.

Though he loved his work, life behind bars, albeit for 9 or so hours a day, became too tough to maintain.

Whilst applying for roles to tide him over in the interim, the thought "something has to be done for the rescues" was becoming increasingly more difficult to ignore.

2020-2021

In it to win it.

In January 2020, Marcus started working as the Head Roaster at Kiss the Hippo in London.

Fresh off the back of a 2019 UK Barista Championships victory, Kiss the Hippo were hungry to do the same again.

Up to the challenge, it was Marcus' task to roast his first competition-grade coffees. A triple-staggered honey gesha from Finca La Negrita, Colombia; and an anaerobic natural from Al-Lahaba, Yemen.

These coffees would go on to place 1st and 6th respectively in the UK Barista Championships whilst also finding usage in the UK Brewers Championship, and the UK Coffee in Good Spirits.

Congratulations to Paul Ross and Rodolfo Borre for their extremely well-earned accolades.

A year later in Spring 2021, the same Colombian coffee would be used in the French Brewing Championship, placing in the top 10.

Excuse the "Danny De Vimto" tee - I didn't realise it was picture day.

2021

Brand new ideas.

Whilst the coffee roasting industry felt somewhat unperturbed when dealing with the uncertainty of the pandemic, Marcus and Rhian only ever saw bad news coming from the rescues.

Then the idea came to them:

Why not start a roasting brand that shares its profits with animal charities and see if this works.

If it doesn't, we've lost nothing. If it does, we can change lives.

In January 2021, the pair got to work.

They used their savings and hired two consultants as well as a designer to help understand what is needed for a brand.

By September 2021, we had our first logo, a free font; a website was running and we registered Sanctuary Coffee Limited.

On October 30th at around 03:00 in the morning, the website went live. Marcus placed the very first order before going to bed.

The next week, Sanctuary Coffee landed their first wholesale customer, Love Shack in East London. To this day, Love Shack still uses Sanctuary Coffee.

2022-2023

It's working.

The first year in business saw Sanctuary take just over £21,000 in revenue and donate £1800 all whilst still remaining in profit.

Multiple opportunities from a pop-up with IKEA in Hammersmith to providing coffees for a breakfast with The Crown Estate started to dominate Marcus and Rhian's free time.

Market appearances with South London Maker's Market (now Salad Days) too became common place.

Although the cost to rent machinery, purchase milk and hire a van for the journeys left the markets somewhat more of a break-even arrangement - the markets did spotlight that people have an appetite for tasty coffee with a social cause - especially if it helps re-home their favourite animals.

2023

Coffee for Breakfast.

The first rebrand saw Sanctuary reimagine 1950s and 60s cereal boxes.

The design philosophy took Marcus and Rhian back to the basics and asked the question: throughout the history of branding, what has stood the test of time largely unchanged?

Breakfast cereal.

Snap, Crackle and Pop, first appeared in 1933.

Tony the Tiger, 1952.

Cornelius Rooster, 1957.

Toucan Sam, 1963.

All of these mascots are still in use today - and the box format allows the reverse to do the talking whilst the front helps sells the brand.

Perhaps in the future Cluck Berry, the rescued chicken barista, may stand shoulder to shoulder with the giants of Kellogg's and General Mills.

2024 - 2025

From Marylebone to Cockington.

A lot can change in 12 months.

Sanctuary Coffee started 2024 in the heart of London and finished the year 330 miles South West in an 11th Century village on the Devonshire Coast.

The first permanent space featured a coffee cart located on the magnificent portico of the beautifully detailed St Marylebone Parish Church.

Constructed in 1817, the church features some of the most glamorous touches famed by the Regency Era. A grand and perfectly symmetrical staircase guides one to a standout entrance with a 25ft Royal Blue doorway; and for the first four months of the year, a coffee cart.

The tenancy at St Marylebone Parish Church was ended in April, just four months in, as urgent repair work to the Clock Tower became apparent.

In October 2024, Sanctuary Coffee featured as the sole coffee provider for Ted's Market - a start-up fresh foods market in Teddington, the area Marcus and Rhian lived at the time.

As Sanctuary had outgrown their space in Teddington, the quest for a new space became the top priority.

Out of curiosity, the decision to explore spaces outside of London was examined. With family top and tailing the M5, Devon felt like an interesting location to look to.

Visiting spaces in Exeter certainly piqued interest - however the up front expenditure made little sense.

In December 2024, Torbay Countryside Trust reached out and let us know of a property in Cockington Village that was becoming available for the first time in 35 years.

On Christmas Eve, a deal was agreed and Sanctuary Coffee's first bricks and mortar would begin works in February 2025.

2025 - Present

A New Chapter.

With production and output in London becoming self-sufficient, the attention has been turned to expanding the brand as a whole and the capacity for charity donations.

The Devonshire locals have taken beautifully to Sanctuary's first location outside of London. Since opening doors in May, Sanctuary is already looking for the second location which will cover the production demands for wholesale and retail orders outside of the capital.