Our Story

It all started with a simple concept, the search for good coffee.

Back in 2019, (Nenad and Alana) traveled through the Balkan region for a six-month adventure. For the majority of the travel, we visited family in small villages. We quickly realized how hard it was to find good whole-bean coffee, as specialty coffee was not popular. So when we ventured to larger cities, we would seek out coffee shops and stock up on beans.

A few months into our trip, we found ourselves in Slovenia. We were wandering the streets of Ljubljana and suddenly an aroma of coffee filled the air. Not being able to pass up a mid-day espresso, we quickly went inside only to find that it wasn’t just a small cafe, but a micro coffee roaster. We spent the next 20 minutes talking with the head roaster and buying as many coffee bags as we can fit in our bags. We hadn’t seen such a big coffee roaster up until that moment, but Nenad knew that was something he wanted to do.

Only three years later, Rebel Roots Coffee is created.

Roasting coffee wasn’t a new concept for Nenad. Nenad’s family has been roasting coffee for generations in Serbia. His mom tells us about how her parents and grandparents would source green beans from a neighboring village and roast coffee right on the stovetop.

The concept of roots permeates everything we do. Roots are a story, a memory, an adventure. While a rebel is someone who doesn’t follow the rules. Put them together and you get Rebel Roots. Now we are restoring our own roots, in our own way.

Our main priority is sourcing responsibly and sustainably grown coffee, as this is something we feel strongly for our own family. Everything we do for Rebel Roots is just an extension of how we live our everyday lives. Every farmer has a story and their own roots. Our goal is to highlight not just the coffee, but also the growers.

We turned our passion for coffee into something we can share with our community. 

So come along for the adventure. 

Shop our coffee