WE’VE DONE ALL THE HARD WORK SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO.

Starting up a coffee roastery can easily set you back six figures, so we’ve set up Ontario’s first shared roastery with a collective, community driven approach. Our members come to roast coffee, but stay for the added value and benefits the collective provides through our gathered experience and networks.

KWCC is the starting point for established and prospective coffee businesses to take control of their coffee programs through green coffee selection, roasting, and on-site quality control.

We are building an inclusive community atmosphere without the smoke and mirrors to encourage collaboration, information exchange and ultimately the collective growth of the Ontario coffee industry.

MEET THE TEAM

Ron Donaldson

Founder
Ron has been in coffee for 15 years, roasting at a small scale initially and then launching the Contrabean Roasting Company in 2016. He has a science background (water quality) and has a passion for data, measuring and quantifying all things coffee. Over the past 6 years he has been active in the broader coffee community through the SCA, establishing relationships at origin, with specialty green coffee importers, equipment companies, roasters and educators; relationships that he looks forward to sharing with KWCC members.
Rumila Green

Director of Coffee
Rumila, our Director of Coffee, has accomplished so much in coffee in the past 8 years in specialty coffee. A skilled barista, Rumila brings extensive front of house logistics and management expertise to our Collective members. Having worked at a couple of the better known specialty coffee shops/roasteries in southern Ontario, Rumila’s hands-on experience setting up, opening and managing (new) coffee shops compliments the production roasting skill set of the KWCC, allowing members to anticipate and avoid pitfalls that often face new cafes. An experienced educator/trainer, Rumila is skilled at developing training programs tailored for baristas, wholesale partners, and the home brewer.
As our Director of Coffee, Rumila wants to make specialty coffee more accessible, and to raise awareness of specialty coffee amongst consumers. Rumila achieves this by clearly communicating specialty coffees story in terms ordinary people can understand. Keen to establish a dialogue around coffee, Rumila loves listening to your coffee story as part of her continuing education. Rumila is also aware of the challenges faced at Origin and understands how important it is to establish and foster relationships with producers.
Rumila’s coffee educational background includes SCA Barista, Brewing and Sensory certification programs. Courses through Barista Hustle Training. She has been an SCA judge for National Barista Competitions, the National Brewers Cup and Latte Art Throwdowns.
Lotus Gwon

Coffee Educator
Lotus joined the Collective in May 2025 as a Coffee Educator, keen to learn more about green coffee sourcing and roasting and to share her sensory expertise with the Collective community.
Lotus’s journey in coffee began in 2008 in South Korea, where she worked part-time at a local roastery café. Her boss was a coffee roaster, and it was there that she first learned how to make pourover coffee. Lotus quickly fell in love with the craft and continued working part-time in cafés throughout university, where she studied biochemistry.
In 2012, Lotus became a certified Q Grader and soon after joined a Coffee Academy in South Korea. Lotus was certified in SCAE Barista Skills Levels 1 and 2 in 2013. While at the Coffee Academy, Lotus trained students in various coffee certification courses, including Q Grader, R Grader (as an assistant), and SCAE Barista Levels 1 and 2.
During her coffee career Lotus has taught a wide range of classes and hosted events focused on barista skills, cupping, café and tea menu development, and coffee-related programs for middle school students.
Lotus is the proud mom of two children.
Nero

Public Relations
August 2013 to September 2025
Ron’s associate for the last 12 years, Nero had a quiet presence at the Collective, observing the goings on from the comfort of the front couch. We said goodbye to Nero far sooner than expected. He loved everyone that stopped to say hi and give him a pat.