Why did you migrate from Italy?
Why choose Australia?
How does Mina feel about Australia, considering she migrated later in life?
So, you settled in quite well in the beginning?
Have you always been bald?
Why of all things did you choose a cafe?
There's a lot of competition here in Darlinghurst. Did you consider the risks?
What makes your coffee special?
Your name is Aldo Cozzi. Where did 'Di Lorenzo' come from?
What was the progression from Cafe owner to wholesaler like?
I know you want to thank your customers on this site for the support they gave you through Andrea's illness.
Can you explain what happened?
There a giants out there in the Coffee wholesaling industry. I know competition isn't something your concerned about but how can you compete with them?
It seems that people are becoming more educated about coffee these days. Has that helped your business?
What does the future hold for Di Lorenzo Caffe?

Why did you migrate from Italy?
Because I'm an independent dreamer. No...don't write that! We were very successful in Italy with our business and I was tired and dreamed of working part time, riding a bicycle everywhere and taking it easy. It was going to be a big change and that was a little worrying.

Why choose Australia?
My parents were immigrants so I was born here. They decided to go back to Italy in 1967. I was seven then so I pretty much grew up as an Italian. I had my midlife crisis in 2000 while the Olympics were on here in Sydney. It made me think of Australia a lot so that's when I decided to come back. I arrived here on the 26th of January. When I arrived at the airport I thought 'WOW', all my relatives took the day off from work to great us...Then someone told me it was Australia Day...I remember how hot it was when I stepped out of the airport - my first reaction was to turn around and go back to Italy.

How does Mina feel about Australia, considering she migrated later in life?
I like Australia a lot. I have a new life, a different lifestyle and I think the culture is great. I've settled in very nicely...all my customers are wonderful and make me feel very comfortable...they help me with my English as well. I still do think of Italy but my home is here now...I'm happy to go just for a holiday.

So, you settled in quite well in the beginning?
When we got here, we travelled around...we took it easy for the first two years. Then we started running out of money which meant I had to start working...We had to learn how to read and write English. That was a big challenge. Mina and I are still learning...Then we completely ran out of money!

Have you always been bald?
I lost all my hair through learning how to surf!... No, no, no, not really, I came here without hair! To tell you the truth, I shave it because it makes me feel fresh and clean...true.

Why of all things did you choose a cafe?
Mina, my son Andrea and myself were sick of not being able to find a good espresso anywhere. I wanted people to try espresso the way we did when I was growing up in Italy. With what little money we could scrape together we found a shop in Boundary Street Darlinghurst. We put in the tiles, the benches and painted it...I knew a lot about espresso, I didn't really know much about running a cafe.

There's a lot of competition here in Darlinghurst. Did you consider the risks?
To tell you the truth, I never thought about the competition but we were very scared in the beginning...When I wake up in the morning, I want my day to be full of challenges. I hate security. That's part of the reason I moved back to Sydney. We just did what came naturally - talk! Talking to my customers is very important to me...We asked every single person what they liked and what they didn't. We talk to everyone that comes in to the cafe, even if we don't know them. I feel rude if I don't say hello...it's like inviting someone to your house and then ignoring them...I would hate it if someone did that to me. That's how I turned our corner store into the local piazza people get together and chat. For example, two of our customers who lived next door to each other for 15 years met at our cafe...I love this story. Now the whole street gets together for coffee every Saturday morning. At Christmas time, over 300 customers and other cafˆ© owners who are now our friends turned up to our cafe for a party...Everybody enjoyed it.

What makes your coffee special?
Mina, Andrea and myself spent months tasting and changing the blend until we got the same characteristics as the coffee back in Italy. For me, the best way for me to describe it is 'It tastes like real coffee!' It became so popular in the cafe that we started wholesaling it as Di Lorenzo Caffe. (Caf-fe)

Your name is Aldo Cozzi. Where did 'Di Lorenzo' come from?
Di Lorenzo is our family name on my wife's side. She's the boss...

What was the progression from Cafe owner to wholesaler like?
Again, it's not something I spent much time thinking about. I learn as I go. When new challenges presented themselves I just took it one step at a time until I worked it out. I treat my Di Lorenzo customers the same as my cafˆ© customers, I asked them what they like and what they don't. They trusted me. They listen to me because they believe my intentions of helping them to grow their business. Most have grown tremendously and some have become famous because of the coffee! That gives me joy. I'm proud of what they have achieved and how they have helped me.

I know you want to thank your customers on this site for the support they gave you through Andrea's illness. Can you explain what happened?
He works as the barista in our cafe and also helps me with training and deliveries for my wholesale customers. In 2004, he passed out one day and I took him to the hospital for a check up. The doctors gave him a scan and they found a tumour on his brain the size of an orange. They had to operate immediately. Andrea is our only child and Mina and I were devastated...We knew our lives and future were never going to be the same. The doctor said it wasn't good - that the tumour was aggressive and few people survived this type. Many of my cafe customers came to visit Andrea - Every night the nurses at St. Vincents had to send people home. During this time, my wholesale customers picked up their own coffee. Mina and I were in shock and couldn't think clearly, I remember the tears we shed because of the overwhelming support and kindness of my customers...When Andrea got back on his feet, everyone came around to our place to visit him. One year down the track Andrea has been given the all clear - and I truly believe that the love and support he received went a long way to beating the tumour. My family and I would like to thank all the people, the nurses and doctors who helped and supported us through this dark time in our lives. Your kindness will never be forgotten.

There a giants out there in the Coffee wholesaling industry. I know competition isn't something your concerned about but how can you compete with them?
Your right....competition isn't something I'm concerned about. It does awful things to your soul. It's about the quality and training. I prefer to keep it personal. Who cares about all the other stuff if the coffee is awful or poorly made. People don't drink umbrellas and barriers. I don't put pressure on myself, no budgets, deadlines or targets. You choose who you want to sell to because your concerned about the quality of the product, the establishment and the relationship.

It seems that people are becoming more educated about coffee these days. Has that helped your business?
Definitely! It's great that people are now starting to identify good coffee. I give my wholesale customers the training required to make a beautiful cup of coffee. I know there are a lot of people out there who have a lot to say about coffee, professional and non professional...that's fine, everyone has an opinion...it's important to know what you like...I prefer to let people taste my coffee and make up there own mind...If they're interested in the technical side, I tell them, otherwise I don't bore them with the details...

What does the future hold for Di Lorenzo Caffe?
My vision is to build a large community of Di Lorenzo customers - growing together, all profitable and all happy. I get a lot of joy working towards this goal. Word of mouth is spreading and to me, that is the most important advertising.