For years, coffee’s been a staple in almost every Filipino’s morning. As kids, we grew up smelling that alluring cup of instant coffee, usually with a piece of pan de sal on top of it. Then we become adults who enjoy that iced cup of coffee with friends or colleagues during our off-times.
From just being a morning necessity to get through the day, it now became a guilty pleasure for most of us. But for some, it has become a way of life; to help themselves and others.
For Andrew Magana, it was a way of coexisting with the community.
From a small window of what used to be a sari-sari store, he was able to grow Typica Coffee into a valuable institution in Taytay.
“Actually we (with his two friends) started Typica sa Antipolo. We used to be an online seller of beans. Yung sa Antipolo, ang pangalan niya is 1740 Typica Coffee. 1740 was the year when coffee was first established here in the Philippines. When we opened it last January 2020, it only lasted until March 15, 2020 because of the pandemic,” he shared.
When his friends informed him of their plans to move abroad, Magana started studying and planning for a rebrand. In one of his walks around his neighborhood, he stumbled upon a place that was up for rent and from there, through a collaborative effort between him, his friends, and his team, he started brewing his vision: a “sari-sari store turned neighborhood coffee shop”.
The first six months for Typica Coffee were fruitful, yet very busy.
“The first six months were like, boom. Lines were long,” Andrew said. Despite the challenges brought upon by the pandemic, Typica Coffee overcame the odds stacked against it. For some people, it may be luck. But for Magana, he attributes the success to hardwork.
With a ‘Kodawari’ attitude: uncompromising and relentless; he and Typica Coffee were able to overcome the overwhelming pressure of success.
But then, Magana was never tied to only what his coffee shop can give to its customers. Everything he faced fueled him into remaining committed to community engagement and giving back. He ensured Typica Coffee stayed genuine to its purpose: serving coffee and serving people.
From when Magana started Typica Coffee until now, he provided livelihood opportunities for the youth, especially students. He personally trained and hired the baristas that worked with him over the years.
He credited Typica’s success to his team of baristas who worked with him over the years. He proudly talked about their achievements during the interview. “They helped the brand a lot since most of them were competitive and had something to prove. Not only did they excel in school, but also in their careers. A lot of them really helped me; Ira, Kaycee, Mika, Chelo, etc.”
When Magana was asked about what inspired him into helping young baristas: “I don’t like holding people to certain standards. I don’t look at someone’s age or tenure. If I think someone has a talent, regardless of age; empower people. Empower them and trust them enough to let them do their job.”
He also supported promising youth athletes of Taytay, through an amateur basketball team he founded: Typica Sports. From what was just an over-some-drinks idea, to keeping his hands on in managing the team, the team grew to an established sports team known in Rizal. “When they approached me about it, I told them I’ll only agree with one condition in mind: I will be personally involved”, Magana said.
“I don’t do things half-baked. For me, it’s just a wasted effort if you won’t give it your all.”
Even in helping the community, Magana made genuine efforts to reach more and more people in the community. They participated and lowkey spearheaded some of the donation drives around Taytay, with the cooperation of Taytay LGU and NGOs.
Aside from community well-being, it also expressed support in promoting towns’ culture through its concept stores.
Typica Coffee actively participated as well in this year’s celebration of Taytay’s cultural festival: HAMAKA Festival by hosting the “Latte Art Throwdown”, an event where amateur and experienced baristas from all over Rizal and Metro Manila were able to showcase their latte art skills. They were also present during the Holy Week, wherein they offered free snacks and water at their booth to all the devotees who joined this year’s ‘Alay Lakad’.
Now on its way to its 4th year, Typica Coffee’s commitment to giving back to the community it was built, remains as passionate as when it first started.
“For the community, we’re intent on being more involved on the drives that we will have. Currently, we also do sponsorships and collaboration with other small businesses to help in highlighting small businesses here in Taytay. We’re also working with the LGU on possible projects in the near future.”
“The way I see it, collaborative effort between business and company is what will solidify or strengthen the bond, especially within the community of Taytay.”
