An 80 percent pay cut. Pamela Chng took that risky step to start the social enterprise company Bettr Barista in 2011. She believed that there was a better way to spend her waking hours.
“We spend 60 to 70 percent of our lives working. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be fully engaged in helping people and regenerating the environment instead of extracting from it?”
Chng founded Bettr Barista to tackle the inequality and inequity issues along the coffee chain. Among the potential consequences are a decline in coffee supply, a price increase, and an industry shrinkage. This could affect the livelihoods of everyone in the system.
Bettr Barista works with farmers to ensure sources and prices remain sustainable. In 2015, it became Singapore’s first certified B Corporation, a recognition given to companies that have voluntarily met the highest standards for social and environmental performance.
Running a social enterprise is not without its challenges. As a result of a lack of funding, Bettr Barista has struggled to establish a brand without a marketing budget. As well as acquiring enough customers, the company had difficulty attracting staff who shared the same values.
“Dealing with the emotional labour of juggling the tension between purpose and profit was—and still is—very real,” says Chng. “We had to learn how to embed systems that helped us balance the tension for the long term.”
The company has emerged from the storm and now operates three B2B outlets in corporate offices, an ISO-certified roasting facility, and a beverage academy. In addition, Bettr Barista has been rebranded to Bettr Group, with Bettr Academy as its education brand, and Bettr Coffee as its retail and experiences brand.
In addition to ensuring sustainable coffee procurement, Bettr Group offers social programmes for marginalised groups, adheres to eco-conscious practices, and ensures inclusive employment.
It currently conducts two core social programmes—the Bettr Holistic Training Programme and the Bettr Work Training Programme—that train marginalised individuals and youth at risk to kick-start their careers in the coffee speciality field.
Chng is also the co-founder of Bettr Lives, a non-profit that provides mental and emotional well-being solutions. She currently serves as the chair of the board.
“Our goal is to make emotional skills more accessible to all segments of society— from youths in schools to corporations to leaders—so we can better grow our emotional intelligence to cope with life’s challenges and complexities.”
Pamela Chng explains the mission of Bettr Lives
A fellowship programme is also in place to support social enterprise and non-profit leaders to develop their emotional skills. Teachers and young people are also offered emotion-based programmes in schools to improve their emotional literacy.
In spite of all she has on her plate, Chng has a lot planned. Bettr Academy is expanding beyond coffee to speciality teas, cocktails, and wines. To serve its clients’ growing demands, Bettr Coffee has increased its roasting capacity threefold and is expanding into the B2C market. The Bettr Group is also moving upstream in its social initiatives to provide more preventative solutions for our marginalised communities.
“We are looking at going out into the South-east Asia region in the next few years to see how we can contribute both business and impact solutions to the region.”
Producer: Adora Wong
Art director: Chia Wei Choong
Videographer: Alicia Chong
Photographer: Mun Kong
Photographer’s assistant: Alfred Phang
Makeup: Wee Ming using NARS
Hair: Jenny Ng
Car: Mercedes Benz EQS SUV
