About

My name is Branko. Born in Colombia, Marine Corps veteran, and the founder of EMELCI Coffee Co.

In April 2024, I toured a coffee farm in Medellín, and something just clicked. I fell in love. Not just with the beans or the process, but with the soul behind it. That moment planted a seed I couldn’t ignore.

After 21 years of military service, and months worth of ejection emails from companies that didn’t hire me, I decided to stop waiting for a seat at someone else’s table. I built my own, caffeinated and full of purpose. So, thank you to the companies that passed on me. You gave me the push I didn’t know I needed.

I’ve been blessed to travel to countries such as Colombia, Mexico, Indonesia, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, South Korea, France, Georgia (the one in Europe). And one thing remained constant wherever I went.....coffee. It was a drink and a connection. Culture. Life.

So when it felt like I was on the edge of a midlife crisis, I chose something else. I chose life. I chose coffee. EMELCI (pronounced M-L-C), is my way of turning breakdown into breakthrough.

Because if we are going to spiral down the rabbit hole of regrets…  we might as well do it caffeinated.