From Coffee Shop Owner to Digital Entrepreneur: Jacob Burn's Journey of Building an Online Coffee Marketplace
After years of operating hospitality businesses, Jacob Burn turned his entrepreneurial experience into a new opportunity in the digital coffee industry. Supported by the strategic knowledge gained through his Full-time MBA at Melbourne Business School, he is now expanding two online coffee ventures, Drop and Altdrop.
An entrepreneurial journey that started behind the coffee counter
Jacob Burn’s introduction to entrepreneurship began with a part-time job as a barista while studying Aerospace Engineering. What initially served as a way to support his university expenses soon developed into a serious interest in the business of running a coffee shop.
Observing the management of the café where he worked, Burn became convinced that he could build and operate a better business. Although he later acknowledged that he had underestimated the challenges his employer faced, his confidence encouraged him to take an ambitious step.
In 2018, he secured a $30,000 loan, partnered with a close friend and opened his first coffee shop. That decision marked the beginning of an entrepreneurial journey that would eventually extend into hospitality, consulting and digital commerce.
While completing his engineering degree, Burn managed the practical responsibilities of running a business. From establishing the company registration and developing its brand to negotiating commercial leases and maintaining financial records, he gained experience across nearly every aspect of business ownership.
He considers hospitality an especially valuable environment for developing commercial discipline. Operating a coffee shop requires careful financial management, consistent service quality and efficient daily operations. With limited margins, even small operational mistakes can affect profitability.
However, one of his most important lessons concerned people and organisational culture. Burn recognised that effective systems depend heavily on the individuals responsible for implementing them. When employee engagement declines, operational standards often follow, creating challenges that can become increasingly difficult to reverse.
His first venture, Harvest Specialty Coffee, eventually closed after its lease expired and the building was demolished. His second business, Plenty Eatery, was subsequently sold to new owners. Both experiences provided valuable lessons that shaped his approach to future opportunities.
Turning practical experience into strategic knowledge
After several years of learning through entrepreneurship, Burn decided to strengthen his business knowledge through formal education. In 2023, he enrolled in the Full-time MBA programme at Melbourne Business School, graduating in 2025.
For Burn, the MBA represented an opportunity to connect practical business experience with structured management principles. Having already experienced the realities of operating small businesses, he entered the programme with a clear understanding of the areas where he needed to improve.
People management was particularly important. While his previous ventures had taught him how to establish operations and manage commercial responsibilities, he wanted to become more effective at building teams, motivating employees and handling workplace challenges.
His experience in the MBA’s people management coursework proved especially valuable. He found the lessons on employee motivation, constructive conflict resolution and leadership directly relevant to the challenges he had encountered as a business owner.
Rather than approaching the programme solely as an academic qualification, Burn used it to examine previous decisions, understand earlier mistakes and develop more effective approaches to managing organisations.
Exploring professional opportunities beyond entrepreneurship
When Burn began his MBA, he initially considered consulting as the next stage of his professional development. He viewed the industry as an opportunity to broaden his commercial exposure and apply his existing business knowledge across different sectors.
Melbourne Business School’s Career Services team supported this transition through professional introductions, career preparation and access to employment opportunities.
One such connection led to an internship with Westbourne Consulting, a boutique consulting firm. The experience proved successful, eventually developing into a full-time professional opportunity.
During his time with the firm, Burn completed five consulting projects, gaining exposure to different business challenges and strategic environments. His background as a small business owner also gave him a practical perspective when analysing operational and commercial decisions.
Throughout this period, Career Services continued to support his professional development, particularly as he considered whether to pursue a long-term consulting career or return to entrepreneurship.
For Burn, the distinction was not simply about securing employment. It was about identifying a direction that would allow him to build a meaningful career around his strengths and ambitions.
Ultimately, his entrepreneurial interests remained central to that decision.
Creating new opportunities in the online coffee market
Burn’s interest in digital entrepreneurship had already taken shape before he completed his MBA. In 2021, during the COVID-19 lockdowns, he established Drop, an online business designed to connect coffee consumers with independent specialty coffee roasters.
The concept emerged from two developments: increasing interest in preparing quality coffee at home and the commercial difficulties faced by smaller roasting businesses during the pandemic.
Drop aims to make specialty coffee more accessible by bringing beans from leading Australian roasters directly to consumers. Through its online platform, customers can discover different roasters and purchase their products without relying on individual store visits.
However, Burn’s understanding of the business opportunity became more refined during his MBA.
He recognised that the challenge was not simply about selling coffee online. It involved addressing inefficiencies in the way specialty coffee reached consumers.
He drew comparisons with the wine industry, where consumers commonly purchase products through established retailers rather than visiting individual vineyards. This intermediary model creates convenience and provides access to a wider selection of products.
Burn saw potential for a similar approach in specialty coffee. Although home coffee consumption was growing, purchasing directly from individual roasters remained common. He believed an integrated marketplace could improve product discovery and simplify the buying experience.
In July 2025, he expanded this vision by acquiring Altdrop, an existing online marketplace that allows customers to purchase coffee beans from specialty roasters.
Together, Drop and Altdrop represent his ambition to develop a more connected digital marketplace for Australia’s specialty coffee industry. By bringing different roasters and their products together, the businesses aim to create greater convenience for consumers while opening additional commercial channels for independent suppliers.
Burn believes the opportunity remains significant because many businesses in the industry concentrate primarily on roasting coffee or operating cafés, leaving room for specialised marketplace platforms.
Strengthening entrepreneurship through the Founders Club
Beyond his own ventures, Burn became actively involved in Melbourne Business School’s entrepreneurial community through the MBS Founders Club. His commitment to supporting business creation and ownership eventually led him to serve as the club’s president.
The organisation provided a platform for students interested in entrepreneurship, business development and alternative ownership models to exchange ideas and build professional relationships.
One notable initiative during his leadership was helping organise the school’s first event focused on Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA) in 2024.
ETA offers an alternative route into business ownership. Rather than establishing a company from the beginning, aspiring entrepreneurs identify and acquire existing businesses, taking responsibility for their operations and future development.
The approach has gained considerable attention in the United States and offers opportunities for professionals with management and strategic expertise.
Burn believes this model deserves greater attention among MBA graduates. Many established small and medium-sized businesses are approaching ownership transitions as their founders reach retirement age. Without suitable successors, these businesses may struggle to maintain continuity despite having established customers, operations and market positions.
For individuals with business education and management experience, acquiring and operating such organisations can provide a practical route into entrepreneurship.
He also sees potential for collaboration with fellow MBA graduates, with discussions already taking place around possible small-business acquisitions.
Looking ahead: Building businesses through experience and opportunity
Burn’s professional journey demonstrates how entrepreneurial experience, formal education and strategic thinking can complement one another. His early years in hospitality provided practical exposure to business operations, while his MBA helped strengthen his understanding of leadership, organisational management and commercial strategy.
Today, his focus is on developing Drop and Altdrop while exploring opportunities within the wider small-business landscape.
His approach also challenges the conventional perception that entrepreneurship must involve creating a technology startup or building a company with ambitions of becoming a global unicorn. Acquiring an established business, improving its operations and creating sustainable growth can be equally meaningful entrepreneurial paths.
For aspiring entrepreneurs, Burn’s experience highlights the importance of understanding business fundamentals, learning from setbacks and remaining open to different ownership opportunities.
His journey began with a part-time barista position and a willingness to take a financial risk. It has since evolved into a broader ambition to reshape how consumers discover and purchase specialty coffee while exploring new possibilities in business ownership.
And when it comes to his favourite coffee destinations, Burn has two recommendations in Melbourne: Small Batch Coffee Roasters in North Melbourne and Proud Mary Café in Collingwood.
As for which country serves the world’s best coffee, his answer is straightforward: Australia.
