Thursdvys is a specialty coffee house that is constantly inspired to give back to the community with its amazing conversation, comforting place that brings people together, and most importantly serving delicious specialty coffee. We had the chance to talk to Hadri who founded Thursdvys back in 2013.
Thursdvys is such a unique name. Why did you decide to name your brand after the 4th day of the week?
There is actually a strong behind this. While I was still studying in Melbourne, I received news that my father was terribly ill. It was a Thursday where I dreamt of my tooth falling out and there was a superstition that suggested that if you had such a dream, someone close to you would pass away. After that dream, I returned to Malaysia so I could be by my father’s side.
It was a Thursday morning when my father passed away and I felt so lost after that. Initially, I only intended Thursdvys to be a side venture for my passion of making coffee. I actually wanted to have a small kiosk and among the name options, Thursday was constantly at the back of my mind. Ultimately, I signed the contract and keys to our current lot on a Thursday. I wanted to use that day as a tribute to my late father and turn that event into something positive for me to remember.
What’s the biggest shift you’ve seen in the brand since it started?
The first shift was how we have birthed and cultivated a brand that is etched in the minds of most KL-lites. The second shift was how we expanded from just specialising with coffee to providing a more wholesome dining experience via our desserts and dining experience. Echoing that, the third shift was how we were able to extend this experience to local households with our in-house products - such as Coffee Bomb & Cold White Coffee bottles.
What is the one lesson you have learned in managing your brand?
To properly manage people. Everyone is different and it can be challenging to manage different types of people, especially when it comes to the varying degree of emotions and intelligence. As of now, the age gap between me and some of my employees can be quite wide and the current generation might not have the grit to endure and persevere through the challenges in the F&B industry. This was a huge departure from our generation as we were more accustomed to tough and demanding environments.
Where do you normally source your materials for your products?
Unlike most coffee shops that are single roasted, we are a multi roaster. This means that we choose what is best for our customer and we do not engage with any roaster on a contractual basis. For our coffees, we get most of our beans from Aitch Coffee Roasters, Kairos Specialty, The Hub , VCR and Common Man Coffee Roasters. As for everything else, we source it locally.
Eventually, we want to become a Coffee Roaster and get into producing our own coffee beans.
In your opinion, what’s the best project/product you’ve ever worked on?
Coffee Bomb! This is one of our initiatives to provide the Thursdvys coffee experience in the comfort of our customer’s homes during the lockdown period. Realising that most of our customers need the right cup to start their day, the idea of Coffee Bomb came about (through multiple nights of collective brainstorming sessions with the team) where we wanted to be innovative and provide a coffee to satisfy these needs.
In essence, this gel based coffee concentrate is not only a fool proof recipe for coffee lovers, but it also packs the full flavours and aromas of a freshly brewed cup. Don’t take our word for it, let your taste buds be the judge of it!
What do you hope to achieve with your brand?
Eventually, we want to become a Coffee Roaster and get into producing our own coffee beans. If we can do that, we would aim to expand and have multiple outlets. I would love to try something different with these outlets - it could be a different concept under a different name.