Evolve North's reason for existing is, quite simply, to bring you great coffee.
When you think about your favourite cafe, there are a few things that come to mind: progressive, well-executed menus, considered and beautiful fit-outs, locally roasted coffee, accomplished and inventive baristas, and a passionate local – or family – that dedicates their life to creating a standout cafe with ambience and efficient yet friendly service to match.
But of course, a successful cafe doesn’t just happen by chance and in regional Victoria, it’s dedicated, hardworking professionals at places like Evolve North that help local cafe owners define the future and, at the same time, give customers the basics at their very best.
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With a passion for roasting exceptional coffee, Evolve North is a family-owned business that’s been assisting customers in hospitality (as in cafe owners) with industry-leading support for more than 38 years.
Aiding coffee businesses behind the scenes, Evolve North has earned itself a solid reputation as a trusted supplier to the hospitality industry, supplying a large range of specialty coffee beans, packaging, and chemical products from three sites across regional Victoria – in Shepparton, Geelong and Mount Gambier.
With Doug Shemilt at the helm – third-generation in the family business – Evolve North comprises an experienced team with more than 444 years of combined hospitality experience who assist budding or established cafe owners by recommending the right product and machinery to make their café a success.
“Evolve is all about doing things differently and better every day, with North being the direction that we’re moving in; we want to see our customers moving forward,” Shemilt says.
“Progressing, evolving and moving up is what Evolve North is all about, but in a coffee world, we can get stuck in the past and forget to look forward.”
Existing purely to help businesses across the region behind the scenes to grow their cafe and coffee community – backed by extensive product range and genuine passion for the hospitality industry – Evolve North draw from lived experience and countless interactions with other customers to devise the best plan for each individual cafe and coffee shop.
Knowing every cafe is unique, Evolve North take on a bespoke approach to partnerships because when it comes to hospitality, there’s no one size fits all or cookie cutter approach.
When they start working with a customer, they sit down with them to understand everything about the business; their needs, motivations, missions and vision and then develop a plan to help achieve their goals.
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From recommending and supplying premium commercial coffee machines (think San Remo, La Marzocco, Viper), providing a large range of catering and cafe supplies and helping select the right blend of coffee (from the finest blends from around the world), to offering customised takeaway coffee cups, in-house marketing experts and photographers to keep a budding brand top of mind, Evolve North is all about developing lifelong partnerships and help regional Victorians make the right decisions for their business.
Not only does Evolve North assist with all the equipment and supplies, but a major part of the business is sharing knowledge and being there for the business after the fact. This includes coffee training and barista courses, coffee machine servicing available 24/7, equipment upgrades and more to ensure cafes are evolving, progressing and reaching their full potential.
“Yes we supply products, but most importantly, it’s knowing that behind 95 per cent of all cafes in Australia there’s a family, and it’s our job to help them to become more profitable and grow their businesses. We’re really just one family helping another family,” Shemilt says.
A love of coffee clearly runs deep within Evolve North, so it’s no surprise that they also roast their own coffee blends at their flagship site in Shepparton. So while they have access to a wide variety of different blends and can assist cafe owners in choosing one that works best for their vision and customer expectations, they also have a few of their own blends to add into the mix. Morning Gorgeous is the newest blend from the coffee roasters, described as the ‘white chocolate of coffee’: familiar yet distinct and scarily morish. You can taste this blend for yourself locally across the region, in cafes like Afterthought in the CBD.
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From roasting and blending beautiful coffees for cafes to drink and serve, to helping cafes grow by providing the correct advice, the best part about Evolve North (besides their a custom one of a kind ordering app) is that their team – locals, just like you and I – are experienced coffee professionals who really care and are happy to share their knowledge.
Their reason for existing is, quite simply, to bring the region’s cafes great coffee.
If you’d like to find out more, head to evolvenorth.com.au or call Geelong Branch Manager Alistair Williams on 0438006998.
