Celebrating Our CafeSmart 2025 Industry Awards Winners!
Back in August, a record-breaking 823 cafes, 51 roasters, and thousands of coffee lovers came together to take action against homelessness in their communities. A massive thank you to everyone who got involved and contributed to the CafeSmart pot. We are now busy collecting, mapping, and distributing donations to support local homelessness services, with recipient announcements coming in the following months. But as we close out another amazing year, we’re giving a huge shoutout to our incredible CafeSmart community for making it all possible!
Roasters Awards
What makes CafeSmart work so well is that it’s a team effort. From day one, collaboration has been key. Multiple partners make it possible and coffee roasters, are at the heart of this CafeSmart community.
Roasters have played a huge role in building CafeSmart into what it is today by rallying their cafes, encouraging sign ups and sometimes even providing beans to show their support on the day. Many get their sales teams involved, turning it into a fun and meaningful way to connect with their cafe network. These partnerships make a big difference and help build a stronger, more united coffee community.
And this year, we’re excited to give a special shoutout to our Top 5 Roasters:
This year, we were thrilled to welcome Campos back to the CafeSmart family! They not only helped spread the word about the campaign within their network, but also brought CafeSmart to life in-store with their amazing teams. And to make their return truly unforgettable, they claimed our top roaster award, recruiting an incredible 100 cafes!
“We’ve had a long-standing relationship with CafeSmart and truly admire the impact they make through the transformative power of coffee. We love the opportunities it creates for meaningful conversations with our café partners and it’s genuinely inspiring to see the whole industry come together to drive positive change.” – Lloyd Thom, Green Bean Buyer, Campos.
#1 Roaster Champion: Campos
#2 Roaster Champion: Single O
#3 Roaster Champion: Seven Miles
Cafe Shoutouts!
2025 was a record-breaking year for CafeSmart! With 823 cafes taking part, our biggest year ever, we were blown away by the generosity and enthusiasm from the coffee community. We know it’s been a challenging time for so many, and the hospitality world hasn’t had it easy, so seeing this level of support genuinely means the world to our small team.
But CafeSmart 2025 wasn’t just about the funds raised, it was about the fun, inventive activations that brought the campaign to life. From funky tunes by DJ Forever Grooves at ONA Melbourne, to relaxing seated massages at Little Brick Road Espresso, and, of course, countless smiley cakes and treats, our cafes found so many creative ways to raise funds, engage their communities, and spark conversations about homelessness.
Picture by Yahava KoffeeWorks, Margaret River, WA
Picture by The Bread Social, Currumbin Waters, QLD
Picture by The Court Coffee Bar, Sunbury, VIC
Fundraising Awards
From record-breaking participation to outstanding fundraising efforts, our coffee community has well and truly outdone itself!
This year, we witnessed an incredible show of generosity, with Told You So leading the way as our top fundraising cafe. Even more special, 2025 marked their 10th year of participating in CafeSmart – a huge milestone that deserves a round of applause.
A massive congratulations to all the cafes who got creative, rallied their communities, and went the extra mile to support grassroots homelessness services.
We love seeing new faces join the campaign and this year, Pepo Eatery made a huge impact in their first year participating. Jumping in full energy, they showed just how much impact a cafe can have from day one. We’re excited to have them as part of the CafeSmart family!
Impactful Partnerships
We couldn’t make CafeSmart happen without the generosity and backing of our incredible sponsors. A huge thank you to Vitasoy and La Marzocco, our CafeSmart 2025 Principal Sponsors and CoffeeTools, CafeSmart 2025 Supporting Sponsor, for their financial support and commitment to the event and cause.
To our media partners Beanscene Magazine and Broadsheet Media, who helped us spread the word far and wide across the coffee and hospitality industry.
And finally, a huge thank you to every single person part of the CafeSmart community in 2025. Every coffee, every donation, and every show of support has made a real difference in our fight against homelessness.
Join Us for the Wrap Up!
As we wrap up CafeSmart 2025, we’re already buzzing with excitement for what’s next. The support and enthusiasm from our community this year has been nothing short of incredible, and we can’t wait to build on that momentum to make an even bigger impact together.
And the year isn’t over yet! 2025 marks CafeSmart’s 15th anniversary, and we’ll be celebrating with a special fundraising evening in November, alongside the announcement of our community grants. It will be a night to reflect on 15 years of impact, hear powerful stories from the community, and raise vital funds to continue our fight against homelessness. Tickets are selling now and we’d love for everyone in the CafeSmart community to join us!
Donations are still welcome! So if you’d like to get involved with this coffee movement and have a REAL and MEANINGFUL impact in your community this year, chip in online now!
