The former journalist and newspaper director will oversee a new era of growth at the influential specialty coffee group as it seeks to open more coffee shops and further scale its international wholesale business
New Coffee Collective CEO Rebecca Vang | Photo credit: Coffee Collective
Influential Copenhagen-based specialty coffee group Coffee Collective has appointed former Politiken Director Rebecca Vang as its new CEO. Vang’s appointment comes as Coffee Collective embarks on a new period of growth to scale its nine-strong coffee shop business and international wholesale channel.
Founded by Peter Dupont, Cees Kuypers and Klaus Thomsen in 2007, the B Corp-certified business said the appointment will enable the co-founders to focus on coffee roasting, purchasing, sustainability and quality, with Vang stepping into the CEO role to provide management expertise, particularly in communications, administration and HR.
Vang held several senior leadership roles at Danish newspaper Politiken over a 12-year period – most recently as Director of Strategy and Organisation since June 2022.
“I have immense respect for everything the three founders have built over the past 17 years. Being able to give them the opportunity to fully focus on what they are among the best in the world at, while I concentrate on the managerial side of the task, is a huge privilege that I am truly looking forward to,” Vang said.
In a press release, Coffee Collective said it had been ‘meticulous and thorough’ in hiring its first external CEO, adding that Vang ‘understands and respects our purpose-driven company and strong set of values’.
Dupont held the role of CEO from 2007 until 2023 when Coffee Collective began the hiring process for a new CEO. Kuypers served as interim CEO from July 2023 and will now return to his position as Chair of the Board.
“We aim to open even more coffee shops, increase wholesale and subscription sales, and continue to elevate the quality and experience for both guests in our coffee shops and customers on our webshop. If anything, we’re even more ambitious now than when we started,” said Klaus Thomsen.
Coffee Collective was an early champion of direct trade, supply chain transparency and sustainability.
The business currently operates eight outlets, a roastery and a bakery in Copenhagen alongside a single coffee shop in Aarhus. Coffee Collective’s wholesale clients span over 40 countries, with prominent coffee shop partners including New York-based Black Fox Coffee Co, Austrian bakery chain Joseph Brot, Seoul’s Edition Denmark, Distrikt Coffee in Berlin and Prufrock Coffee in London.