The Kweza Story

Kweza was started through a Kickstarter campaign in 2016 by Fina Uwineza, a Rwandan entrepreneur, and Steve Beauchesne, CEO of Beau's Brewery, with the vision to create a women-owned and women-led craft brewery. Thanks to this first kickstarter, Kweza was able to fund the purchase of a bottling line. In 2018, Kweza was reinvigorated with the addition of Jessi Flynn as Co-founder and Managing Director.

Today, Kweza continues to honor the tradition of beer. In Rwanda, and most cultures around the world, women have traditionally made beer but not been able to benefit from that creation and lineage at the commercial level. Kweza aims to have women running all aspects of the business and to enable African women to share in the profit of the product they've historically always made - as investors, staff, or leadership - and ultimately build generational wealth on that history.

We source locally, sustainably, and practice a business model that supports women and the local economy.

Kweza means “harvest” and “purity” in Kinyarwanda. We believe this name fits with Kweza’s mission to celebrate Rwanda’s flora and ingredients through Kweza beer.

Meet the team

  • Jessi Flynn, Co-founder

    Jessi Flynn

    Co-Founder, Managing Director

    At Kweza, Jessi brings together her passion for craft beer, sustainability and women’s empowerment. A trained landscape architect and agriculture and sustainability expert, Jessi began home-brewing in her backyard more than 7 years ago. Jessi is Kweza’s Head Brewer and enjoys developing new Kweza recipes with Rwanda’s incredible flora.

  • Debby Leatt

    Co-founder

    Debby has over 20 years of experience in the culinary arts and business management. A trained chef, Debby has spent the last ten years in Rwanda developing farm-to-table cuisine for her company, Food & Stuff, drawing on Rwanda’s bountiful, fresh ingredients. Debby leads Kweza’s partnerships, operations and is responsible for bringing Kweza’s beer to life with food & beer pairings.

Advisors

  • Steve Beauchesne

    Steve Beauchesne

    CEO, Beau’s All Natural Brewing Co

  • Christian Von Der Heide

    Christian Von Der Heide

    President & CEO Siebel Institute of Technology

  • Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela

    Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela

    Brewmaster & Entreprenuer

  • Karen Kocher

    Karen Kocher

    Microsoft Global General Manager, Talent and Learning Experiences

Learn about our original Kickstarter.