Coffee, transmitted from Shenzhen to the world.

Our story

From San Francisco to Shenzhen

Morse Coffee began in 2018 at a street corner of the A8 Music Building in Shenzhen's Nanshan District. Founders Tony and Shirley, two young Yale graduates, spent years living in San Francisco, steeped in one of the world's great coffee cultures. They wanted to create that same feeling elsewhere, so they left high-paying careers in the Bay Area and brought coffee culture to Shenzhen.

What started as one corner shop is now five locations across Guangdong, a Tmall flagship store, a 1000 square-meter specialty coffee roastery supplying coffee shops and other businesses across China, and a corporate coffee business serving some of the world's biggest companies. After going unexpectedly viral on Rednote, Morse was labeled one of the most "Instagrammable" cafés in Shenzhen, but the brand was built on something simpler: the belief that anyone should be able to enjoy genuinely high-quality coffee.

"A cup of coffee doesn't need to be complicated or flashy. Quality, freshness, taste — that's what matters. Relax, it's just good coffee."

Founders

Two Yale graduates, one obsession

Tony Chen — Co-founder

Tony holds a B.S. in Biochemistry from Yale University. In the US, he worked as a strategy consultant and head of operations at tech startups, specializing in strategic positioning and execution. He is a certified Q Arabica Grader (essentially a "coffee sommelier"), a credential held by only ~6,000 people worldwide. At Morse, he leads operations of retail and wholesale businesses, as well as product development and QC, ranging from coffee bean selection, roasting technique, and quality control.

Shirley Guo — Co-founder

Shirley graduated from Yale University with a double degree in Psychology and Economics. In the US, she advised international investment banks and hospital groups as a management consultant, specializing in operational optimization and new product development — the disciplines she now applies to running and scaling Morse.

Quality you can measure

Effort where no one sees it

Specialty coffee means arabica scoring 80+ points — just 3% of the world's coffee production. Many brands use one specialty bean and call themselves specialty. Every single bean Morse uses scores 85+, representing the top 1% in quality coffee around the world, and all freshly roasted weekly at our own roasting factory.

• 100% specialty beans. Every bean in every drink scores 85+ points.

• Nothing stale, ever. No store uses beans roasted more than 21 days ago, and retail bags ship within 5 days of roast date.

• Engineered roast profiles. Each new coffee gets 20+ trial roast profiles, sacrificing up to 50kg of beans before a recipe is approved. Every batch is cupped in our QC lab, and only those meeting our rigorous standards will be served to customers.

• Recipes tuned hourly. Grind size, ratio, and volume are adjusted daily against temperature and humidity to ensure every customer gets the best cup of coffee.

• The remake promise. Any cup a customer doesn't love gets remade on the spot, as many times as it takes.

All roasting runs on Giesen and Loring machines — two of the most respected roasting machines in the world. At our 1,000㎡ roasting facility, green beans from around the world are stored at a constant 18–20°C to ensure optimal quality before roasting.

Global reach

Sourced worldwide. Sold across China. Present internationally.

Morse sits at the intersection of the world's coffee-growing belt and its fastest-growing consumer market — buying at origin, roasting in the Greater Bay Area, and selling through retail, e-commerce, and wholesale channels, while staying visible at international events.

Sustainability

Sustainability in every step

We believe great coffee and environmental responsibility are inseparable, from farm to cup.

• Our Loring roaster is one of the most energy-efficient in the industry.
• All single-use packaging — cups, bags, straws, and bean bags — is 100% recyclable or compostable.
• Our bring-your-own-cup discount rewards customers for reducing waste, and our direct farm relationships support sustainable livelihoods at origin.

Contact

Let's talk

Whether you're a corporate partner, an event organizer, or just a coffee lover, we'd like to hear from you! Life is short — let's have a coffee first.