EDITOR Angel Huang｜TRANSLATOR Aurora Lin｜PHOTOGRAPHER Leon Hung
從2017年獲得世界咖啡沖煮大賽（WBrC）冠軍，成為台灣第一位拿下這項世界頭銜的人開始，王策Chad Wang的名字便與精品咖啡劃上等號。出身咖啡世家的他，曾應父親之邀前往上海的王力咖啡公司共事，卻在過程中發現「既是父子又是上司下屬」的複雜關係帶來許多摩擦。為了尋求自我定位與出口，他一頭栽進實驗室苦練咖啡沖煮，最終在世界賽事上一舉奪冠。獲獎後的王策選擇在2018年創立個人品牌「VWI by CHADWANG」，開闢了一條屬於自己的道路。如今品牌即將邁向第二個十年，王策正帶領VWI從個人冠軍頭銜中蛻變，逐漸茁壯為一個兼具美學底蘊與營運實力的國際品牌。
Specialty Coffee From a World Title to International Ambitions
Interview | Chad Wang, Founder of VWI by CHADWANG
Chad Wang became the first Taiwanese winner of the World Brewers Cup (WBrC) in 2017. His name has been closely associated with specialty coffee ever since. Coffee was already the family business. At his father’s invitation, he joined Wangli Coffee in Shanghai, but being both father and son and boss and employee proved a frequent source of friction. He needed to find his own identity—and an outlet. He threw himself into brewing practice in the laboratory, work that eventually earned him the world title.In 2018, Chad founded VWI by CHADWANG and began building a business of his own. As VWI approaches its second decade, his focus is on developing it beyond his reputation as a champion, into an international brand with a distinct approach to design and the business capabilities to support it.
主動跳脫二代光環，用專業實力定義自己
談及當初離開父親公司並走上創業之路，王策表示這並非為了向家人證明什麼，而是源於對自我的期許與對業界話語權的追求。他認為要在咖啡產業擁有真正的聲音，就必須具備屬於自己的頭銜，讓大眾認識的是他自身的專業成績，而非僅是「某某人的兒子」。
品牌名稱「VWI」取自 Water（水）的象徵，一方面源於科學事實——手沖咖啡有98.5%的成分是水；另一方面則蘊含著浪漫哲學，將水視為一場關於生命的實驗，追求最純淨、最原始的咖啡風味。
雖然品牌創立初期不可避免地與世界冠軍的獎盃緊密連結，但王策始終將自己定位為「家長」，任務是陪伴與引導，讓VWI透過團隊專業、空間設計與服務體驗長出屬於自己的生命，而非永遠依附在「王策」這個名字之下。
Making a Name of His Own
Chad says his decision to leave his father’s company and start a business was never about proving something to his family. It came from his own expectations and his wish to have a say in the coffee industry. He believed he needed a title he had earned himself. People should know him for his expertise and achievements, rather than simply as someone’s son. The name “VWI” takes its inspiration from water. There is a practical reason for this: pour-over coffee is 98.5% water. Chad also sees something romantic in it—water as an experiment in life, a way to explore coffee at its purest and most original. At first, the brand was inevitably tied to his world championship trophy. Chad, however, has always thought of himself as a “parent,” there to guide and support it. He wants VWI to develop its own identity through the team’s expertise, the design of its cafés and the service customers receive, without always having to rely on his name.
藏在細節裡的品味，讓經典質感融入日常
在精品咖啡專業已成為台灣市場基本門檻的當下，VWI 將經營核心放在生活美學與哲學理念的傳達上。王策坦言自己個性帶有一點叛逆與批判性思考，不喜歡盲目跟風流行，因此品牌始終致力於推廣手沖咖啡這項經典的品飲方式。
VWI 將品味落實於許多無聲的細節中，包含咖啡師的穿著談吐、店內放的書籍音樂、包裝視覺選擇，以及反映團隊偏好的選豆脈絡。此外，王策也將自身的心境投射於空間設計上，從早期在台北微風對面的復興店，以安靜的優雅風格呈現，到疫情期間台中店保留粗獷紋理與溫暖氣氛的轉變，都展現了他對美學的真實詮釋。同時，他也在個人堅持與顧客體驗之間不斷尋求平衡，例如彈性調整椅座舒適度，讓美學不流於冰冷的高調，而是能被細緻對待的生活日常。
An Eye for Detail, a Place in Everyday Life
Specialty coffee expertise is now a basic requirement in Taiwan’s market. At VWI, Chad puts much of his attention into how the brand communicates its ideas about aesthetics and everyday living. He admits to being a little rebellious. He questions things and dislikes following trends, which helps explain VWI’s continued commitment to pour-over coffee. The details tell customers what VWI stands for: the way baristas dress and speak, the books on the shelves, the music playing in the café, the packaging, and the choice of beans that reflects the team’s tastes.The spaces also reflect Wang’s state of mind at different points in his life. The early Fuxing café, opposite Taipei’s Breeze Center, was restrained and elegant. The Taichung café, opened during the pandemic, took a different direction, with rougher textures and a warmer atmosphere. Both expressed his taste at the time.He has also learned to make room for customers’ needs alongside his own preferences. Even seating comfort is open to adjustment. A café’s appearance should not come at the expense of the people using it; good design belongs in the small comforts of an ordinary day.
從成就自己到成就他人，穩健邁向國際
走過將近十年的歲月，王策將自己的經營心態形容為從「任性」走向「成熟經營」，再走向「成就他人」。
這種成熟同樣反映在產品創新上，如近期推出的「空氣拿鐵」，並非盲目進行分子料理式的風味碰撞，而是將傳統拿鐵解構，以冷萃咖啡為基底結合打發奶清，以新穎狀態呈現經典結構。
面對下一個十年，VWI不盲目擴張台灣分店，而是著重於優化採購與周轉率等內部營運，並規劃前往步調悠閒的南部開店。同時，憑藉著國外成長的世界觀以及長期擔任日本沖煮賽事評審累積的人脈，王策正積極布局日本等海外市場，期許讓這份源自台灣、經得起時間驗證的純淨風味真正走向國際。
Helping Others Succeed—and Taking VWI Abroad
Chad describes his approach to business over nearly ten years as a shift from “stubbornness” to “mature management,” and then to “helping others succeed.”The same change can be seen in how VWI develops its drinks. Its recent “Air Latte” is not an exercise in molecular gastronomy, combining flavours just to see what happens. It takes the traditional latte apart, using cold-brew coffee as the base and adding whipped milk whey. The familiar structure remains, presented in a different form.For the next decade, Chad has no intention of opening cafés across Taiwan simply to increase their number. He is concentrating on operations, including procurement and inventory turnover, while planning a café in the slower-paced south. Overseas expansion is also on the agenda, with Japan among the markets he is actively pursuing. Growing up abroad gave Wang an international outlook, and years of judging brewing competitions in Japan have helped him build connections there. He now wants to take VWI’s pure coffee flavours from Taiwan to a wider audience—and build something that lasts.
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