Absence of Colombia’s Juan Valdez is ‘cause for concern’

Coffee drinkers of the world are waiting anxiously to see if the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia will be accepting applications to fill a key vacancy – someone to portray the iconic character Juan Valdez, the organization’s widely acclaimed brand ambassador.

 

Juan Valdez, the fictional mustached coffee farmer, was introduced to the public in 1959. The character was outfitted in the traditional garb of an “arriero,” one who transports goods using pack animals like mules.

Juan Valdez was frequently seen in television commercials alongside his trusty mule Conchita, with two large sacks of freshly harvested 100% Colombian coffee beans strapped on her back.

 

The smiling Juan Valdez donned a wide-brimmed, white straw hat (“sombrero Aguadeño”) edged with a thin black band. Draped over one shoulder was a large poncho, a white, woolen garment with linear embroidery known as a “ruana.”

He also carried a leather “carriel,” a crossbody bag, with lots of pockets. Completing the “Juan Valdez look” was a leather apron, called a “tapapinche,” tied around his waist…and traditional Colombian sandals on his feet.

Only three men have portrayed Juan Valdez since the advertising campaign launched in 1959. The most recent Juan Valdez (shown below) was Carlos Castañeda, a fourth-generation coffee grower from the village of San Bartolo, located in the Andes Mountains within northern Colombia.

 

Castañeda was chosen after a two-year search among more than 300,000 candidates. He took over in 2006 and played the part until he died in April 2024 at age 58.

As of this writing, management of the Colombian coffee federation was still mulling over whether to replace Juan Valdez…or let him “rest in peace.”

Stress levels are percolating within Colombia. In Bogotá, Camilo Sánchez, reporting for El País, a Spanish newspaper, noted that Juan Valdez once “captivated half the world with his simplicity, a smile and a cup of coffee.”

“It is a role that has failed to be filled for more than a year. Nobody in Colombia knows who will play the farmer,” Sánchez wrote.

He reported that Germán Alberto Bahamón, CEO of the Coffee Growers Federation, “is currently considering the future of the character, weighing the pros and cons of continuing to use a human to represent Juan Valdez.”

This is a big deal in this South American nation. For more than six decades, Juan Valdez has been embraced by Colombians as a positive ambassador for the entire country.

Colombian children choose to dress like Juan Valdez, as their Halloween costume.

Juan Valdez ranks among the world’s most successful advertising campaigns of all time. Created by the Doyle Dane Bernbach advertising agency in New York City, its goal was to convince American consumers that premium 100% Colombian coffee was far superior to coffees made with beans from other countries.

When the campaign rolled out in 1959, only 4% of U.S. consumers were even aware that Colombia produced coffee. By 2004, surveys showed that consumer awareness of Colombia as a coffee-growing country had climbed to exceed 91%.

Mike Ferguson of Covoya Specialty Coffee in Healdsburg, Calif., recalled the very first Juan Valdez commercial: “Juan’s mule is refusing to budge, and the voiceover declares, “You think he’s stubborn? You don’t know Juan Valdez.”

“Juan was stubborn because he refuses to grow coffee below 5,000 feet, insists on growing coffee under shade trees and picks only ripe cherries, harvesting them ‘one-by-one’ by hand,” Ferguson wrote.

“It took only five months for the Juan Valdez campaign to have measurable impact on consumer perceptions,” Ferguson said. “The number of coffee drinkers identifying Colombian coffee as excellent increased by 300%, and 60% of those surveyed said they were willing to pay more for Colombian coffee.”

Here’s more background on the cast of characters

Only three men have held down the role of the legendary Colombian coffee farmer named Juan Valdez, a character created in 1959 by the Doyle Dane Bernbach advertising agency in New York City for the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia.

The first actor was José F. Duval, a native of Havana, Cuba, who moved to the United States at age 20 to pursue an entertainment career. He appeared in a production of “Die Fledermaus” at New York’s Metropolitan Opera before venturing into musical theater and movies.

He played lead roles in “Kismet,” “South Pacific” and in several production of “The King and I.” Duval’s film credits include “The Cardinal” and “The Mambo Kings.”

 

He brought life to the character of Juan Valdez for 10 years, serving in that role from 1959-69.

Carlos José Sánchez picked up the baton in 1969 and reigned as Juan Valdez until 2006. A native Colombian, Sanchez was born in Fredonia and studied at the University of Antioquia. He worked as a coffee farmer before becoming an artist in Medellín, Colombia’s second largest city.

The coffee growers’ federation interviewed more than 50 candidates before settling on Sánchez to step into the Juan Valdez role in 1969.

All of Sánchez’s television commercials as Juan Valdez were voiced over by Norman Rose of Philadelphia, Pa., an actor, film narrator and radio announcer whose velvety baritone voice was often called “the Voice of God” by colleagues.

Rose was a drama graduate of George Washington University in Washington, D.C., who honed his craft at the Actors Studio Drama School in New York City. 

 

During World War II, he was recruited by the U.S. Office of War Information to work as a radio newscaster. After the war, Rose lent his distinctive voice to radio programs such as “Dimension X” and “CBS Radio Mystery Theater.”

Rose was an accomplished stage actor appearing in both Broadway and off-Broadway productions. His television credits include soap opera roles on “One Life to Live,” “All My Children,” “The Edge of Night” and “Search for Tomorrow.” Rose is also credited with contributions, both as an acting and voice talent, in 14 motion pictures.

 The third man to depict Juan Valdez from 2006-24 was Colombian Carlos Castañeda.

All three former actors are deceased.

The number of different mules who have appeared as Conchita over the years is undetermined.