Minor Figures started, as many of the best things in the UK's specialty coffee world do, in a small room in East London with a lot of cold brew and not much else.
Founded in 2014 by Stu Forsyth, Jono Chiu and Will Rixon - three friends with a shared coffee obsession - the brand began as a cold brew company, making ready-to-drink cans out of a microbrewery in the east of the city.
The oat milk came later, almost by accident. Their wholesale partners were asking for it, so they made it. What happened next nobody quite expected: the Barista Oat became the thing. These days, they supply the oat milk across all Caravan restaurants.
We sat down with Greg Amann of Minor Figures to chat about everything from shared coffee obsessions and parties thrown under bridges in Copenhagen to *that* duck costume. The conversation was led by Charlie Humphries, Caravan’s Head of Brand.
Charlie: Minor Figures started as a cold brew company in an East London microbrewery. Tell us the story of how you went from that to oat milk.
Greg: The cold brew was working - retail, B2B, building real momentum. Then our partners started asking whether Barista Oat could exist as a standalone product. We listened, made it happen, and haven’t looked back since. What we didn’t expect was how quickly it would become the thing we’re known for.
Charlie: You’ve said you “don’t really care about milk.” What did you mean by that?
Greg: When Stu, Jono and Will first set out to develop what would become our original Barista Oat, every stage of research, development and quality control was centred entirely around coffee. Hundreds of coffees were tasted and tested, each one evaluated with a singular focus: to remain faithful to the character of the espresso, cold brew or filter coffee at its core.
From the very beginning, the ambition was never to overshadow the coffee, but to honour it - revealing the nuanced flavours that specialty coffee has to offer, while paying respects to every hand involved in its journey, from the growers, processors and roasters to the barista. The role of our Barista Oat has always been intentional: not to dominate, but to support. A conduit designed to elevate the coffee and showcase the work behind the cup.
Charlie: The brand name, the illustrated characters, the anti-aspirational tone - where did all of that come from?
Greg: The name starts in the cup - those small human shapes a barista leaves in the foam when they’re really on it. Minor figures. It felt like an honest description of what we were trying to do: stay in the background, let the coffee be the main event.
The illustrated characters on the packaging grew out of the same instinct - people at the edges of the frame, living their version of it. There’s a Biggie Smalls lyric in there somewhere too. And if you’ve ever seen the duck costume, you’ll understand the rest.
Charlie: How is Minor Figures different from other oat milks?
Greg: The goal has always been to keep coffee front and centre - not only in the cup, but in the wider community, culture and in sustainability. We’re not here to simply sell products. We’re here to support and celebrate the specialty coffee community while building a business model that leaves a positive, lasting impact on the planet.
Most challenger brands position themselves as punk - built around disrupting the status quo. We see ourselves as more funk than punk. Inclusive rather than exclusive. Collaborative, not combative. If people connect with the energy behind the brand and the products we make, we want them to be part of it.
That mindset has led us to collaborate not only with key partners across the coffee industry, but with music artists, creative communities and global fashion houses - all united by a shared appreciation for craftsmanship, culture and creativity.
Charlie: How are you supporting the future sustainability of coffee?
Greg: The future of coffee depends on far more than what ends up in the cup. It relies on the health of the ecosystems, communities and generations behind it. As climate pressures continue to reshape coffee-growing regions around the world, supporting long-term resilience has become essential. That’s why we partner with organisations and nonprofits focused on regenerative farming, climate adaptation and creating more sustainable futures for coffee-growing communities.
One of those partners is Bean Voyage (beanvoyage.org), an organisation helping smallholder women coffee farmers build thriving, independent businesses and stronger local economies.
We also support Todos al Agua (rgccoffee.com), which works directly with coffee-growing families to help them adapt to climate change, improve livelihoods and protect the natural resources their communities depend on.
Charlie: Caravan roasts its own coffee and we’re proud of it. What makes a good coffee, do you think?
Greg: Before we even began thinking about flavour, we wanted to know that every part of the coffee value chain had been treated with fairness, transparency and respect. When it comes to tasting, we recently spent time cupping coffees with the United Baristas team, who introduced the idea of ‘precision and alignment’. In simple terms, the coffees that resonate most are often the ones that deliver exactly what they promise - where the flavour in the cup genuinely aligns with the tasting notes, and the character of the coffee feels intentional and clear.
That said, a topic that continues to divide MF HQ is co-ferments. On the one hand, they can be incredibly precise - tasting exactly as described. On the other hand: is that cheating? Is it innovation? We’ll leave that one to the coffee community to debate.
Charlie: When you’re in a Caravan restaurant and you see someone order an oat milk flat white - what do you hope they notice (or don’t notice) when they taste it?
Greg: Honestly, what we hope is that the oat milk doesn’t announce itself. If someone orders that flat white and what they taste first is the coffee - its character, the care that went into it - then we’ve done our job. The Barista Oat is there to support the cup, not headline it. If it’s doing its work properly, you’re barely thinking about it.
Charlie: What are you most excited about for Minor Figures in the next twelve months?
Greg: We’re only really at the beginning of our Barista Oat Regenerative rollout, and there are some big plans about to go live. We’re also hosting our first Field Days trip to the Wildfarmed Farm (wildfarmed.com) to see regenerative agriculture in action - a chance for the team to get out of the city and understand firsthand what that commitment actually looks like in the ground. Beyond that, we’re supporting a new 5L format developed specifically for high-volume coffee partners, designed to deliver greater efficiency and consistency without compromising on quality.
Charlie: What song best reminds you of Minor Figures Barista Oat?
Greg: Delilah by Fred Again - because it soundtracked one of the best parties we’ve ever thrown. During World of Coffee Copenhagen 2024, we hosted a party beneath Knippelsbro bridge that blurred industry event and small-scale festival. With Delilah playing full volume, several members of the coffee community began swan-diving off the bridge into the harbour. That’s the Minor Figures energy, really: show up somewhere unexpected, turn it up, and see what happens.
Want to know more about the people behind what’s on our menu? Discover the full story of our suppliers - the roasters, brewers, farmers and makers we work with - at caravanandco.com/pages/suppliers.
