Our Team

Bringing together the best of both worlds.

The Swiss Coffee Alliance team unites wide-ranging business development expertise with world-class research and development capabilities. The team has both extensive senior management experience and leadership capabilities in the coffee industry. The interdisciplinary networks in Switzerland and around the world enable the Swiss Coffee Alliance to deliver high-quality solutions that efficiently meet the demands of the market.

Chahan Yeretzian

Founder

Professor Chahan Yeretzian brings a wealth of scientific expertise to the Swiss Coffee Alliance. His lifelong passion for coffee began in 1996, when he joined Nestlé R&D in Lausanne, Switzerland. Here, his research covered everything from liquid coffee and coffee concentrate to soluble coffee and single-serve systems.

In 2008, he founded the Coffee Excellence Center at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences – the first ever public research institute dedicated to coffee. Professor Yeretzian is a driving force behind the shift towards an innovation-driven coffee industry and is a board member of several coffee industry associations.

Carla Kapikian

Ms Carla Kapikian is a business expert, with experience in brand development, analytical market studies, and education.

Professional Experience:

Her corporate background includes positions in the Greater New York Global Headquarters of J.P. Morgan Chase, Young & Rubicam, and HRA Research.

Upon her move to Switzerland, Ms Kapikian worked for the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts where she launched the first engineering degree program taught in English in Energy Systems Engineering, in which she additionally taught Marketing Management.

Education: S.B. in Mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and M.B.A. in General Management from Harvard Business School.

Lars Losinger

Professional Experience:

  • 2017 – 2019: Member of the Executive Management Board, Alpiq InTec Group, Zürich
  • 2011 – 2017: CEO, BKW ISP AG, Bern
  • 2009 – 2011: General Counsel (Legal & Regulatory), Sunrise Communications AG, Zürich
  • 2006 – 2009: Executive Director/Co-Investor, SymbioTec AG, Zürich
  • 2000 – 2005: CFO/COO, T-Systems Multilink AG, SOLPA AG, Geneva/Zürich
  • 1997 – 2000: Vice President, Swisscom International, Swisscom AG, Bern
  • 1995 – 1997: General Counsel/Legal Counsel, Swisscom International, Swisscom AG, Bern
  • 1993 – 1994: Advocate in Law Firm, Bern
  • 1990 – 1992: Director of Department of International Law at VBS, Bern

Education: Master of Law, Advocate, University of Bern, LL.M. Master of European Business & International Trade Law, University of Amsterdam, Program for Executive Development, IMD in Lausanne