Starbucks announces winners of their Regional Barista Championships
The winner of this coveted title goes on to compete in the Starbucks EMEA Championships in London.
Training to become a Starbucks partner -as the company's baristas are called - is no simple affair.
These passionate coffee lovers undergo many months immersing themselves in coffee knowledge and lore, with a hands-on curriculum crafted by the world renowned Starbucks Global Academy.
'We love recognising the hard work our partners invest in finetuning their craft,' says Ishan Natalie, Coffee Excellence Lead at Rand Capital Coffee Licensee Holder Starbucks SA. 'That's why the District Barista Championships are always such an exciting event.'
Ishan explains that the competition was introduced by Starbucks several years before the company entered the South African market in 2016, when it was eagerly embraced by local partners.
The competition starts with the Store Championships, with winners from this leg going on to compete in the District Championships, which took place in March.
The Regional Championships, which were held in May, saw partners from the KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape and Central region (comprising Gauteng and the Free State) will battle it out for a chance to take part in the National Barista Championships in June.
The winner of this coveted title goes on to compete in the Starbucks EMEA Championships in London, where 37-46 other national champions from the European, Middle East and Africa will showcase their Coffee Knowledge, Creativity and Passion in the hopes of being named the Starbucks EMEA brand ambassador – and, more importantly, have a chance to compete in the Global Championships.
This year, 83 partners from Starbucks' 72 stores around the country raised their hands to take part in the championships.
Each was expected to show their expertise in different categories, including latte art, coffee quality and storytelling, where they share their knowledge about the beverage.
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