Every year we have the opportunity to invest our time and attention into many different things. In a coffee shop it can be overwhelming and toward the end of the year we tend to look back and determine way to improve how we invest our time and attention for a better result.
In today's Shift Break we will be discussing a few very important and foundational areas where, if you consistently focus your energy with intention, you will find massive return for your customer's, your staff's, and your own happiness and well being.
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What a great year this has been! So many amazing people have graced KTTS with their presence, perspectives, and wisdom. It really is an embarrassment of riches when it comes to high value content that can transform your coffee business and career.
This makes it very hard to choose which lessons and insights to feature in this episode but I have assembled 8 clips from past guests that I believe offer timeless wisdom and an opportunity to reflect and give you positive momentum for the new year.
So here is the line up in order of appearance and what they speak on:
Links to guests websites:
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On this last Founder Friday of the year I am quite happy to feature a coffee shop founder story that is firmly rooted in service to the community. First as a pop up at farmers markets and now with a brand new brick and mortar, today we are talking with the founders of Last Mile Cafe in Grand Rapids, MI , Arick Davis and Sarah Layman!
Arick and Sarah come with a lot of experience in non-profit and impact work as well as tech. Their love for coffee and people eventually guided them to begin Last Mile Cafe as a coffee business designed to make an impact through partnerships with charitable organizations and baking into the practice of donating 10% of all revenue to charities voted on by customers.
As of this recording Last Mile's brick and mortar was only 9 days in to being open and things have just been getting better from there.
In our conversation we will get an inside look at how they built this impact coffee business, their reasons behind decisions that shaped it, and how they have experienced the journey from mobile to brick and mortar and the road that lies ahead.
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We all want our customers and staff to be enthused and exhibit what we tend to consider loyalty. Trouble with that word is that it is loaded with assumptions that go beyond reasonable expectations. In fact, many operators are guilty of trying to force loyalty through coercion and making things personal. This is toxic loyalty.
In today's Shift Break we will be discussing a better way to think about loyalty that builds healthy and sustainable relationships with staff and cultivates an environment where we are more likely to receive peoples advocacy beyond what is expected.
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There has been a resurgence of mobile coffee carts recently. A cart offers the owner flexibility, agility, and a less risky entry into the world of coffee retail. That said, there are many elements that need to be in place for you to be able to set up and run a successful coffee cart that serves you and your customers well.
Today we are going to be digging into the details with special guest Sarah Naylor of Daybreak Coffee Cart in Snohomish, WA.
After 11 year working in coffee and and 8 years in the pastry arts world, Sarah Naylor took all the hard earned knowledge and wisdom she acquired through the hospitality industry and ventured out on her own to found Daybreak Coffee Cart.
Daybreak is a mobile coffee cart and craft coffee catering service located in Snohomish County. Daybreak offers an elevated coffee experience for weddings, corporate events, conferences, and mitzvahs all around. They love serving others and aim to bring joy wherever we go. It is their mission to share kindness through coffee.
In our conversation we discuss her beginnings and the practical actions she took to start and run her cart in a way that serves her guests with excellence and most importantly, also serves her and her family well.
We cover:
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Sometimes it is hard to reconcile our desire for authenticity with the performance and responsibilities that we take on while working in the cafe.
In fact, for many baristas, their distaste and inability to embrace anything that seems prescribed leaves them incapable of delivering meaningful service and, consequently, incapable of advancing in their work.
Today on Shift Break we will be talking about your role as a barista and how it is your job to take ownership of the duties of your job, which will in turn create the authenticity you seek.
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It is easy to assume that if you have found the right person for the manager role then they will not need very much investment or guidance from you to get the hang of things. After all, they are amazing and you trust their "can do" attitude will be enough to help them succeed.
Obviously this is not the case, but that doesn't stop this misconception from being repeated over and over again in cafes around the world.
Truth is that no matter who you hire you will need to have a structured plan for how they will be onboarded, trained, and invested into over a significant period of time so they are not only capable, but confident and trustworthy in their work as a true leader, not just a barista with a few extra admin tasks.
On today's show we will be going over some needed mindsets, approaches and methods for training up a manager that may challenge the way you have been doing things to this point, but will definitely set everyone up for success.
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Cupping is as close to a sacred act as we get in the world of coffee evaluation. It is a ubiquitous ritual that comes with its own language, implements, and is considered by many to be THE way that we can determine what a coffee has to offer. But what if cupping is not the end all be all we assume it to be? What if certain aspects of cupping are not to be worried about so much allowing us to explore other, dare we say, better ways to to evaluate a coffee?
In this episode of RoR from Roast Magazine we get to see how recent scientific discoveries have shown us we can stop worrying and start tasting on a new level through an article called "Why We Can Stop Worrying About ExtractionYield in Cupping" w/ the author and coffee legend, Charlie Habegger!
Charlie is a coffee buyer with field experience in over 20 producing countries. He has built sourcing and quality systems with Intelligentsia, Handsome Coffee Roasters, and Blue Bottle. He has been a U.S. Barista Championship finalist and a subject of the documentary film "Barista" (2015). He has volunteered with the Coffee Quality Institute leading local Q-grader teams in Myanmar and the Philippines. Charlie is now proudly with Royal Coffee in the Bay Area, where he has the fun title of "Sourcing Curator and Placement Specialist", a project-based position of sourcing and marketing. Before Royal, Charlie was a legal cannabis buyer in California's Emeral Triangle, an experience that renewed his love for California and specialty agriculture of all kinds. He thinks constantly about the vast distances many of us never get to cross as consumers.
In our conversation we cover:
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Boy oh boy this is a hard question. The initial reaction you might have to this will depend on your position in the cafe, your knowledge of the circumstances around the firing, and your ability to consider more than just the individual in question. In other words, it depends.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about how to think about this question and what areas need to be considered before you give a definitive answer that may have unintended consequences on your coffee shop, and more importantly, the people that work in and frequent it.
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Innovation in the coffee industry is no longer just about large companies tweaking their standard equipment, but it is becoming democratized through small companies bringing their ideas to market through networking, research, and good old fashioned hard work. Today we are going to be talking with 2 of the 3 founders of one such company who sought to create the brew they always wanted but could not find. WE sit down with Michael Butterworth and Ozgur Jerdan of Etkin Design!
Etkin believes that when brewing coffee, you shouldn't have to choose between batch size and quality. If you brew coffee for your friends and family, you’re often stuck making multiple batches.
The Etkin Dripper is a new, flat-bottom coffee dripper optimized to make up to one liter of coffee. Its proprietary design helps ensure an even extraction and ideal brew time resulting in a sweeter, more full-bodied cup of coffee.
Michael is a long time industry pro who has been a Q Grader, competitor, cafe trainer, and is an active AST certified trainer
Ozgur is from Istabul,Turkey where the brewer is made with local porcelain and has a long history in academia around ESL, education, and organizational direction.
Aaron O'Neal is the other cofounder who is not present in this interview. His history and expertise is in the work of media and marketing consultation and leadership as well as a deep love and enthusiasm for coffee.
In our conversation today we explore the story of how these three friends conceptualized and brought this brewer to market, the relationships, challenges, and what their story means for innovation, hospitality, and how we enjoy coffee at home.
We Cover:
Links:
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It happens all the time. We create and conduct training sessions, programs, and systems that contain a lot, but do not produce a lot. We end up with staff that are ill equipped for handling the day-to-day work and challenges that await them and as a result the customer receives an inconsistent experience.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about the number one way we create ineffective training programs and what we should be investing into in order to properly train and prepare ours staff and business for long term success
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How we perceive something impacts the decisions we make when buying or selling it. That in turn shapes consumers perceptions and then the market. Tea has long been a part of the coffeehouse, but has suffered from a severe lack of attention and intentionality. As a result the way we represent tea in many cafes has a negative impact of the tea farmer in effectively disappearing their work and craft.
These are the types of issues that today's guest has sought to address.
After leaving her corporate job Annie Xiang founded Volition Tea. As an Asian American owned business is core to how Volition operates with every decision centering around serving their community and the farmers whom we have the privilege to know.
Instead of focusing on transparency and direct-trade for the sake of marketing, Volition shares the stories of tea farmers to cultivate empathy across communities.
Through their intensive focus, highly curated offerings, and education Volition is making a real impact.
In this interview we will be talking with Annie all about how Volition began, its values, and the practical ways we can adjust our mindsets and practices to usher in a better future for tea and tea farmers through our cafes.
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How do you measure the impact of you business? We talk about metrics mostly related to finances and judge success accordingly. But the deeper and more fulfilling impact a coffee shop can have is based in relationship. You may ask yourself the question, does what I am creating or have created have “heart and meaning”? If your answer is yes and you stick to it long enough, you might end up with a legacy similar to our guests today, Cindy and Cary Arsaga
In 1992 Arsaga Coffee was founded in Fayetteville Arkansas and this month marks the 30 year anniversary of Arsaga's. Cindy and Cary have been serving generations of people through their unique, warm, and welcoming shops. Their goal has always been to provide a space that fosters true community, connection, and the positive life change that results.
Today they are pillars in the North West Arkansas community and continue to serve great coffee in authentic spaces with simplicity and integrity.
Arsaga's was the first coffee house I was a regular of and where I first learned to love coffee and the coffeehouse as a dynamic space. I was not only the catalyst for my career but it was the force that inspired innumerable lives. Needless to say this a really special episode to me.
So today we get to hear the story of how Arsaga’s was born from an, how it grew organically and with soul, how they took on bigger projects such as baking, food, and roasting, all while staying true to their roots of “Heart and Meaning”.
We cover:
Links:
Instagram @arsagascoffeeroasters
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Thankfulness, positivity, affirming others, and seeking out the good can easily be things that get pushed aside in favor of the problems, stresses, and challenges of this life. As a result we develop a lob sided perspective in reality.
On today’s Shift Break we will be talking about how we can pursue thankfulness and seek out the positive in the midst of the challenge to have a full and truer view that actually gives life.
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Communicating hard things is hard! The good news is that is does not have to be ineffective or worse yet, turn into something problematic or toxic. There are ways to deliver necessary feedback to employees (or anyone for that matter) that will not only show that person respect but also allow you your dignity as well.
I wanted to re-share this old episode today with our friend Tom Henschel because there are many of us who are struggling with communicating to our staff regarding their performance, behaviors, expectations, etc. In this conversation Tom outlines a simple 4 step process that you can use to deliver difficult feedback well.
Tom Henschel is an expert in workplace communications and executive development. Over the past 25 years, he has helped hundreds of senior leaders achieve The Look & Sound of Leadership.TM
In addition to coaching executives, Tom facilitates team events and delivers highly interactive trainings in the areas of effective communications, presentation, and influence skills.
Tom’s popular podcast, The Look & Sound of Leadership, airing since 2008, is consistently cited as “What’s Hot” in the business podcasts on iTunes.
Links:
Tom's Company: www.essentialcomm.com
Tom's Podcast: The look and Sound of Leadership
4 Step Feedback Model PDF — Keys to the Shop
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"Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good" This quote from Voltaire has been passed around a lot over the years, even still it seems we always find ways to procrastinate on starting things because we either want it to be perfect, feel fear of looking bad, don't think we have the time, or perhaps we jus don't feel the urgency.
On today's shift break we will be talking about how embracing the practice of taking imperfect action can radically transform you and your coffee shop.
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It is easy to assume that a managers main role is only to take on basic administrative tasks. At least this is the way I would argue most shop treat the role of manager. It is too often a "set and forget" scenario that inevitably leads to managers being in the dark, ill equipped, and frustrated. Ultimately this is all due to a lack of development and a failure of ownership to play an active role in it.
On todays episode we will be talking about five key areas that need to be developed in managers consistently as the primary way to facilitate their success, and in turn, the success of your business.
We will cover:
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It's wild to me that this still exists in coffee. The idea that we can throw a new hire in to the mix of a shift in a new cafe and expect that they will prove themselves as being valuable based on if they fail or thrive.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about why this "sink or swim" mentality is glorified laziness, culturally dangerous, and what we should be doing as leaders to train our people.
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Photography and coffee seem to just go together. There is something about creating moments and capturing moments that is a common drive where we can see the beauty in the mundane and get a whole new appreciation for our work and world. Today we are going to chat with of one of our industries great photographers, Rob Sykes.
Rob Sykes lives in Houston, TX with his wife and daughter. H practices Zen meditation, writes haikus, and works full time as a PICC RN at North Cypress Medical Center.
In addition to this, Rob is a serious coffee and street photographer and content creator who you can catch around the Houston cafe scene, roaming the streets of major metropolitan areas, and of course capturing magic at Coffee Fest's Latte Art World Championship Open.
In this conversation we talk about Rob's journey into coffee, photography, and how he sees the world through those lenses.
We cover:
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The coffee shop is a can be a stressful place. There are no shortage of challenges big and small that confront us daily whether you are a barista of cafe owner. The trouble we run into is when our confirmation bias kicks in with every challenges and our emotions run away with us and we start telling ourselves a story about what is happening that may not be true but certainly feels true in the moment
On today's shift break we will be talking about how we can combat overthinking and negative emotions through pursuing objectivity, truth, and growing in confidence as a result.
Related episodes:
224 : Essentialism: Focusing on what truly Matters w/ Greg McKeown
111 : Self Care 101: Taking care of yourself while taking care of others
176 : Harnessing Emotions at Work w/ Andrea Hoban of Oji Life Lab
When Going Above and Beyond Goes too Far
258 : Prioritizing your Mental Health in the New Year w/ Dr. Lara Pence
Make Your Problems More Specific
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Email Chris@keystotheshop.com
Some interviews we have on the show touch on so many deep, important, and impactful subjects that it is hard to stop the conversation. This was one of those. I wanted to talk about our guests' career and then see where it led us and indeed we ended up discussing an assortment of issues that are sure to inspire and spark curiosity in you as you listen. Today we sit down with the great mat North!
A seasoned veteran with over two decades experience, Mat’s career has taken in the full gamut of
the of the industry. Stints with both national and local chains as well as time in the consumables and
engineering side of the business have given him a well rounded view of the coffee world.
In 2013 Mat opened Full Court Press, a small specialist multi roaster coffee shop and now Nano-
roastery in the heart of Bristol. His knowledge, passion and attention to detail ensured FCP quickly
became a forerunner in the city’s scene.
It is FCP’s excellent customer service, coupled with the team’s ability to articulate their extensive
knowledge in an approachable way that has ensured Full Court Press not only serve exceptional
coffee, but have sparked an interest in specialty coffee among their customers.
Having sold FCP in 2021 he’s moved into the green side of the industry as part of the European office
for Raw Material, a not for profit social enterprise working in all aspects of the supply stream.
He is also the author of the acclaimed book, Coffee - A Modern Field Guide, and recently served as
National Coordinator for the UK chapter of the Speciality Coffee Association.
As we chat I hope you take notes and continue to pursue the subjects discussed. From Mat's career evolution and lessons learned through business ownership - to his take on how the industry has evolved and what is key for us to prioritize in the future, this conversation is loaded with value and insights from start to end.
We discuss:
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I am so happy to share with you this Founder Friday episode that takes a hard look at what is possible when you want to offer excellence at scale in a cafe setting. I am joined by the founder of the iconic and standard setting company, WatchHouse, Roland Horne.
Roland founded WatchHouse in 2014 after extensive experience running small-to-medium-size businesses, including luxury aquarium design consultancy Aquarium Architecture. He holds directorships with property development funds Verum Domus and Coutts & Partners and has a MSc in Economic History from the London School of Economics. Roland is currently pursuing his Executive MBA at the University of Oxford. Over the past seven years WatchHouse has grown from one cafe on London’s iconic Bermondsey Street to ten sites, and in August celebrated the one-year anniversary of the WatchHouse Roastery at 36 Maltby Street. A CEO with formative experience outside the speciality coffee sector, Roland has a unique and ambitious perspective on the sustainable expansion of the brand throughout the London and beyond.
In today's conversation we get to hear the story behind WatchHouse and how Roland has grown this brand through values and a desire to keep integrity of service and quality front and center. I think you will get a great deal from this chat.
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It is that time of year where cafes are all but expected to have the ubiquitous PSL in their menus. But there is so much more. Beyond this staple drink specialty cafes around the world have developed both wonderful signature creations and others that don't really resonate.
Today on shift break we will be chatting about signature drinks and I will be offering some tips on how to approach curating and creating your specialty drink menu so your beverages are more likely to succeed.
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Should you open a coffee shop? How hard could it be anyway? Thousands of people around the globe have a dream to open a cafe. Once open however that dream can quickly become a nightmare. I am thrilled to have been able to collaborate with fellow podcasters over at the Adventures in Coffee podcast to put together an episode that deals with this subject head on.
In this episode you will hear from several aspiring, and experienced entrepreneurs as James harper, Scott Bentley, and myself take you through the 3 major areas of inspiration and focus cafe owners need to be aware of. The money, the scene, and the dream.
This was awesome to get to be a part of and i hope you enjoy this very important and entertaining show!
Links:
Slate article: My Coffee Shop Nightmare By Michael Idov
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How long should you let your coffee age after roast? Is freshest always best? How can we ensure our customers get the coffee at its peak? These are some of the questions that we explore around the topic of ideal resting times for roasted coffee, the myths around freshness, and the best practices for managing your coffee's flavor life cycle.
In this episode of RoR from Roast Magazine we are exploring the new data associated with ideal resting times for coffee based on a study recently conducted and written about in Roast and the implication it has for you, the customer, and the farmers. We are talking with the person who conducted this study, President of Cafe Kreyol, Joey Stazzone.
Joey Stazzone is the President (and Chief Coffee Hunter) of Cafe Kreyol. In 2012 Stazzone took his experience with chemistry, cross breeding, and backyard botany, and began working in developing countries with the goal of creating sustainable employment, through specialty coffee. Through a decade of hands-on experience working with producers, he has become an expert in fermentations and post harvest processing. Stazzone has been a licensed Q Grader since 2015, and became a CQI Lecturer on Quality Evaluation in 2022. He has been on the international jury for the Bolivia Quality Cup Presidential Tournament 4 times, and has given dozens of lectures on Direct and Transparent Trading as well as Fermentations and Post Harvest Processing. Through his work at Cafe Kreyol, he provides consulting to hundreds of producers a year, conducting experiments on coffee fermentations, pH testing, and post harvest processing, in order to help them develop the best possible product. Recently his company completed a scientific study on post roast resting times, and the impact on sensory evaluation which can be found HERE
In our conversation we cover:
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