Cemal Ezel OBE is an award-winning social entrepreneur and the Founder and CEO of Change Please, a pioneering social enterprise dedicated to tackling homelessness through the global coffee industry. A former City commodities trader, Cemal pivoted his career to focus on purpose-led business models, launching Change Please in London in 2015.
The organisation operates on a unique, highly impactful model: it trains people experiencing homelessness to become specialty baristas, pays them the London Living Wage, and provides housing support within 10 days of employment alongside therapy and financial aid. Under his leadership, the initiative has scaled from a single coffee van in Covent Garden to an international footprint spanning eight countries, supporting thousands of people into long-term financial independence.
In addition to Change Please, Cemal has launched several other successful ventures, including Old Spike Roastery, Coal Rooms restaurants, and Serious—a sustainable consumer goods brand.
His innovative approach to blending commercial viability with systemic social change has earned widespread international acclaim. Change Please has been named Bloomberg’s “World’s Most Promising Startup,” Sir Richard Branson’s Sunday Times “Start Up of the Year,” and has won the prestigious World’s Best Social Enterprise Award. Today, Cemal is a globally sought-after speaker on ESG, ethical leadership, and social mobility, continuously driving the conversation on how businesses can profitably address the world’s most pressing social and environmental issues.