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TELLING THE STORY IN THE STATES
As demonstrated by statistics and surveys,
consumers in the U.S. are currently seeking
more information about where their food
comes from, and both universities and
business are constantly working to improve
their cultural and global awareness and
appreciation (Ingram, 2017). In addition to
being open to ideas and addicted to coffee
(as previously explored), millennials are the
Figure 10. Small Coffee farm near La Playa Sahuayaco, current most culturally-diverse and globally
Cusco
aware generation (“Millennials: Confident,” 2010). In its most basic form, Peru is full of the kind of stories
the United States loves; storytelling as a marketing method is key. Studies continue to find that qualitative and
quantitative data crucially coupled with the power of story is what sells product and builds trust and
relationship between buyer and seller (Maritz, 2014). While in many ways, the large percentage of small
coffee farmers in Peru presents problems as far as funding for equipment, dependency, education, and
poverty, (all of which are currently and gradually being overcome by previously discussed successes and
investments) (Paluck, 2010), the small plots of land (an example of which shown above in Figure 10) and the
stories behind many family-run farms only adds to the story that could be told back in the States.
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