Meet the team

The people behind, and leading, The Cupping Directives

A young man with short brown hair and a beard, wearing a green jacket and black shirt, standing in front of a dark background with colored panels.

Andrew Whitworth-Smith
Founder and operator

Andrew began his career as a part-time barista at a commercial high street chain whilst completing his post-graduate degree in sports biomechanics, before quickly moving into the specialty sector. Releasing his new found passion for coffee, Andrew moved into a manager role after graduating.

He then moved to London in 2021 and immerse himself in coffee business and culture, securing a role as a cafe manager, progressing to company-wider trainer, before pivoting into a roastery as a production roaster. Shortly after joining the London coffee scene, he realised that there was a disconnect and frustration surrounding community events, which conceived the idea for The Cupping Directives in the summer of 2022.

With the early success of the project, Andrew made the decision to go part-time to have more opportunities to grow the community, before leaving employment in 2024 to go full-time at The Cupping Directives. He now spends most of his time marketing events across the UK, consulting with businesses and directly with producers, sourcing and roasting for Waypoint, all whilst creating a positive wake adhering to the values of the business.

Young woman with shoulder-length brown hair sitting inside a cafe next to a window, with a cup of black coffee and a purse on the table, smiling at the camera.

Gene Ke
Team member

Gene has a Mathematics degree from the University of Oxford and began her career teaching secondary school maths before finding her way into specialty coffee. What started behind the bar grew into opening her own café, where hosting events and bringing people together became just as important as the coffee itself.

Now a Certified CQI & CVA Arabica Q-Grader, Gene works across coffee quality, education, and events, and is actively involved in coffee competitions. Through her business, Tribe Coffee Workshop, she partners with Cupping Directive as a consultant, supporting events, education, and quality-focused initiatives. She also works as QC for Waypoint Coffee.

At the heart of Gene’s work is a love for learning, sharing knowledge, and creating welcoming spaces where people can connect over great coffee.

Join the team

We are always on the look out for bright and driven coffee professionals to join our team.

Whether you have a project idea you would like to collaborate on, or are looking to get involved in marketing, events, workshops or consultation, we would love to hear from you.

We are currently not actively searching for a new team member. However, when we do need to expand the team, our first stage will be to reach out to those who have been following our journey and contacted us early on.