If Australia is known for coffee snobs, Seattle is where espresso hit the masses, as the birthplace of coffee giant Starbucks.
Seattle is also where Kenton Campbell began his career in coffee, operating his own cart.
"Obviously it's the home of Starbucks... it gave me a real sense of what the market was all about. I was a coffee cart, so if I wasn't any good at service and product, I had nothing else, so I had to be to stay in business."
Then came a work trip to Australia in 1995 , to assist a global company in setting up franchises - it was to have been a short stay.
Campbell's big break was almost literal; days after landing down under he was in a car accident - something he calls a blessing in disguise.
"I was fortunate to be okay, but also I was in a lot of pain. A guy recommended I see this sports masseuse, and the person who laid her hands on me that day is now my wife."
And so, Australia became home, and he set his sights on his own venture, brewing plans for Zarraffa's.
Kenton Campbell founded his business after suffering from serious work-related injuries. Source: Supplied
Over six months, Kenton's wife Rachel took out a personal loan of $9000, using it to buy a roaster, beans and a company car.
"I put my wife through entrepreneurial hell... at first it was very difficult. There was a point where I was living on the floor next to the couch at her parents' and she looked at me and said, "I only have $20 in my bank account, I don't think I can afford to keep you."
Then, payment came through for Kenton's accident, buying time to purchase a trademark for their new company.
"I was up in Brisbane doing the trademark and nobody was carrying around coffee, nobody had a paper cup and I thought "they haven't done it yet, they don't know about the market."
The business launched as a coffee roaster in 1996, and the following year, Zarraffa's opened its first store.
Zarraffa's brought the take-away coffee trend to Brisbane. Source: Supplied
The company franchised its premises in 2001 to grow the company - there are now 65 sites in Queensland.
"I never thought we would get this big... The roasters now can do 400 kilograms of coffee per hour."
Zarraffa's has outgrown its premises every few years, and has finally landed in a disused shopping centre, on a mammoth 18,500 square metres undercover.
"I calculated we need 32 franchise stores to break even, to pay all people and recoup. Without the roaster, without the vertical integration, it never would have happened, I would be out of business."
In 2009, the business opened a coffee drive-through, to add speed to its service and Campbell says that franchise covered set-up costs on its first day.
"Still, a lot of people don't know who we are, we broke into Brisbane and it was constantly "Zarraffa's, what is that?" I said to my staff, this is good. When people start knowing the name, that's when we won't grow as fast."
As for that distinctive name and logo: Kenton said it took time to find the right fit.
Zarraffa's comes from the term Zarafa, a famous giraffe in the 19th century. Source: Supplied
"The first thing I thought of with this company was the brand; I had a monkey, a rhino and a giraffe. Monkey [and] coffee company didn't see right, rhino didn't fit and I have always loved giraffes but that on its own didn't seem right."
Until he discovered the Arabic translation: zarafa.
"It sounded spicy and earthy and it gave something to the brand that a giraffe on its own wouldn't."
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