Cafes Ibiza

The economic situation in Ibiza in the 1950s was characterized by poverty and absolute insecurity. Young Vincente Tur was looking for adventure and decided to emigrate. One trip took him to Venezuela, where he lived for two years. During this time, he learned to love coffee. He also learned to love the art of coffee roasting and to enjoy everything this profession entails.

When Vincente returned to Ibiza, he and some partners used his savings to buy a small coffee roasting company. The purchase took place in 1958, fortunately at a time when the island of Ibiza was experiencing a real revival thanks to the tourism sector. This economic development enabled businesses on the island to grow steadily.

At that time, the import of green coffee was still heavily controlled by the government, meaning coffee roasters only had access to a limited number of green coffee bags. However, demand significantly exceeded supply, and the quality of these coffee bags was usually poor and very expensive.

To circumvent this coffee shortage, Vincente had to buy bags of contraband coffee. He was looking for a ship that would transport goods and sail near the coast of Ibiza. Once he found one, the deliveries always took place at night, either from the beach of Ses Salines or Es Codolar. They would then approach the merchant ship from the direction of Ibiza by barge to complete the purchase. After the goods were loaded, they would paddle back to the beach and hide the coffee there until they could retrieve it at a convenient time.

Since its founding and to this day, Cafés Ibiza has never stopped working, growing, investing, and serving the people of Ibiza. "We feel deeply loved by the people of these islands, who enjoy Cafés Ibiza as a product they consume every day. We also feel loved and supported beyond our islands, and we have an increasing number of contacts in other countries."