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Keys To The Shop : Equipping Coffee Shop Leaders

A coffee podcast providing coffee shop owners and leaders, with insights, inspiration, and the tools you need to grow and advance your coffee business or coffee career. We learn from experts both in and outside the coffee industry as they deliver specific, practical, and actionable advice about ownership, optimization, profitability, barista work, employee culture, management, scaling, leadership, personal development, and anything else that will help you achieve success in the coffee shop.
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Keys To The Shop : Equipping Coffee Shop Leaders
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Mar 7, 2024

Many people want their customers to be loyal to their shop without providing much incentive for that loyalty. In fact we often will all but demand loyalty by virtue of our status rather than based on what we deliver. Customers all over the world will bend to this insinuated expectation we have against their better interest for only so long before they leave.

Today on Shift Break we will be talking about why loyalty may actually be a behavior that prevents us from improving and truly earning a customers patronage through consistently delivering value and learning from the times when we do not. 

Listen to these related episodes next:


Owners need community too!

Want to be a part of a dynamic group of fellow coffee shop owners all working together for each other's success? 

Apply for Key Holder Coaching Group today! 


 

 Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help you thrive in coffee?

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Everything you need for back of the house operations https://rattleware.qualitybystainless.com/

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Mar 5, 2024

Hospitality, patience, and giving grace to others and yourself are lessons we can learn from many areas of life. The coffee shop presents a unique opportunity for us to exercise those character traits as we serve customers along side our fellow staff members in the often pressured and fast paced day-to-day cafe work. There will many mistakes made, but in those mistakes lies opportunity for growth and re-affirming a people first focus. 

Today's guest, David Foster, wraps all this up in an awesome new children's book called "Jett Goes to Work With Dad"!

David Foster is a co-owner at Kiln Coffee in Grand Junction, Colorado. He is passionate about promoting intentional hospitality and his love for the coffee industry. He is also the author of this new book that teaches lessons that young and old can all learn from. 

In our conversation we talk a lot about hospitality in all its iterations in the cafe business, how David got into coffee, why he wrote the book, and his insight into how we can serve others well through coffee. 

 

Related episodes: 

 

 

 

Want to run an amazing coffee shop?

Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Feb 28, 2024

Marketing can be good, and bad. At it's best it exposes you to resources that help you mindfully build your business. At its worst it takes advantage of your insecurity and fear of not know how to build that business and turns your dream into nightmare of chasing the "next" and the "new" just to try to succeed. 

Today on Shift break we will be talking about a healthy way to interact with the ever expanding universe of options, data, sales people, and stats so that you can be decisive and be confident that your decision was a well considered one.  

Listen to these related episodes next:


Owners need community too!

Want to be a part of a dynamic group of fellow coffee shop owners all working together for each other's success? 

Apply for Key Holder Coaching Group today! 


 

 Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help you thrive in coffee?

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Feb 28, 2024
Roasting has historically been shaped by the experiences of crafts people and their experiments with what works, or does not work, in their roastery. These days we hav many people entering into the industry to affirm, challenge, and explore those dogmas in an effort to find the "why" behind the assumptions we have. Today's Rate of Rise guest, Mark Al-Shemmeri is one of those people challenging dogma with data. 

Mark is a chemical engineer who spent four years as a doctoral researcher (EngD) in the UK figuring out how to simulate coffee roasting in-silico, creating a digital twin of a coffee roaster. The data-driven approach meant a lot of roasting, analysis of the process and product and coding up of simulations to predict how different green coffees, in different roasters with different process conditions, transform during roasting. Mark also operates a nomadic roastery under the pseudonym 'dialect' - a name befitting for his engineering approach to coffee and his efforts to challenge the complexities entrained in the industry.

In this episode we talk with mark about how as a chemical engineer he ended up also in professional coffee work, how his expertise has shaped his own approach to roasting, and a look into the experiments he has been running to explore the variables of coffee roasting in a quest to simplify the overly complex. 

Links:

 

Related episodes:

Visit www.roastertools.com for the best software to help you run a roastery!

Feb 26, 2024

When you think about quality coffee and what it takes to help usher in change in both how it is rendered and then how it is perceived globally, you would likely be overwhelmed with the notion. It is a lifelong vocation that requires not only personal commitment, but a large team of people to accomplish it Toady we get to talk with the new World Barista Champion Boram Um, who's family has been on this quest since his father moved to Brazil from Korea to begin his second professional life as a coffee farmer. 

Boram graduated in Business in Boston University and joined his father in the world of coffee in 2014 being certified as a Q-grader. With the desire of an entrepreneur he founded Um Coffee Co. in 2016 and in 2017 achieved best coffee shop in Sao Paulo. 

Since 2019 he began competing in Barista Competitions and for 3 years straight was crowned national champion in Brazil. In 2023 for the first time in history of Brazil Boram achieved 1st place in the World Barista Championship. 

Boram has been traveling the globe speaking and presenting to audiences of coffee professionals in places like Leaders Forum at the Cafe Show in Korea, Hotelex 2023 in Shenzhen China, and Coffee Fest Madrid, and many others.

Today we get to talk about Boram's career, competition, and the business of rewriting the script for coffee in Brazil and achieving higher quality in coffee. 

In this episodes you will learn about:

  • Boram's Journey in Coffee
  • Managing People and Quality Control
  • Impact of Coffee Shops on Farming Practices
  • Winning the World Barista Championship
  • Focus on People and Coffee
  • Um Coffee Co.: From Farm to Cafe
  • Sustainable Practices in Coffee Production
  • Building Relationships with Coffee Producers
  • The Importance of Training and Education
  • Expanding Um Coffee Co.'s Reach
  • The Global Coffee Community
  • Um Coffee Co.'s Future Plans

Links:

Instagram: @boramum

@umcoffeeco

@fazendaumcoffeeco

https://www.umcoffeeco.com.br/?lang=en

WATCH Boram Um's Performance

 

Related episodes: 

 

OWNERS!

Want to be a part of a dynamic group of fellow coffee shop owners all working together for each other's success? 

Apply for Key Holder Coaching Group today! 

 

 

Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Feb 22, 2024

Last year we did many interviews live at Coffee Fest. I got to chat with Ian WIlliams of the famed sneaker/coffee concept Deadstock Coffee in Portland Oregon while on the show floor. 

In this brief conversation Ian shared some very helpful insights around marketing, entrepreneurship, and staying true to values and culture while growing a business. 

Deadstock began as a cart and has operated a sneaker-themed coffee shop in the Old Town Chinatown neighborhood since August 2015. Since then the company has won numerous accolades.

Ian and his team have steadily grown the business through genuine hospitality, unique partnerships, and establishing themselves as a leading voice for black owned coffee shops. 

Ian has been speaking on coffee, marketing, diversity, and business around the country for a while now and you can find him on the Coffee Fest circuit this year again doing just that. 

I hope this interview helps you greatly and stay tuned for more interviews like this soon as we get ready to go to the first Coffee Fest show of 2024 in NYC!

Links:

Ian on IG: @eeweezie

https://deadstockcoffee.com/

 

Related episodes: 

Sponsor:

www.coffeefest.com

Use code KEYS15 to get 15% off your General Admission!

 

Feb 20, 2024

It is very difficult to take criticism. Especially when you may be fully aware of the imperfections of those offering the feedback on your performance. Trust me, I have lived the rage of those moments in full, and have come to see how many opportunities I wasted being upset vs taking the feedback and using it to improve and grow. 

Today on Shift break we will be talking about how we should take the imperfect criticism and feedback we receive and own our part and our response... especially when we occupy the position of barista and may be young in the industry. 

 

Listen to these related episodes next:


Owners need community too!

Want to be a part of a dynamic group of fellow coffee shop owners all working together for each other's success? 

Apply for Key Holder Coaching Group today! 


 

Hey Managers! 

In my consulting work through KTTS Consultingworking with managers as a career coach is one of the services I offer. 

 Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help you thrive in coffee?

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Feb 19, 2024

Special announcement! Applications are still open for the next round of Key Holder Coaching Groups! 

The Key Holder Coaching Group is a select group of coffee shop owners who love coffee, people, and want to see their business and others succeed! 

 
Insights, perspective, accountability, and growth.
 
These are just some of the benefits I have seen change lives through consulting and over my years facilitating workshops and trainings.

​I have personally been in a group for podcasters for the last 6 years and have also hired coaches, consultant, and been a part of an online community. It has all been indescribably transformational.

​For the last few years I have wanted to bring to more people, that same kind of transformational experience in a small group setting and now we are now ready to launch the second round of peer-to-peer mastermind groups!

​About the groups:

​🔑 Key Holder Coaching Groups will be hosted by myself and consist of a curated group of 5-6 coffee shop owners.

​🔑 We will meet together 2x per month for 2 hours over a 6 month period. 12 calls total!

​🔑 This structured group will allow each member to have multiple hot seat opportunities to present specific issues to the group and gain insight, feedback and direction to help them develop themselves, their people, and their business.

​🔑 In addition we will be consistently updated on each others progress and have opportunity to speak into each others lives.

​🔑 Key Holder Coaching members will have access to each other via the Signal app as well.
 

​I will be keeping applications open for the rest of this month (February)

​Selected members will be notified end of February and beginning of March. New rounds of groups will begin in March!
 
 
If you have questions or want to reach out for anything else, including one-on-one coaching and special consulting projects then email chris@keystotheshop.com.

-Chris Deferio
 President | Host
 Keys to the Shop

 

Want to be a part of a dynamic group of fellow coffee shop owners all working together for each other's success? 

Apply for Key Holder Coaching Group today! 

 

A couple testimonials: 
 
"The most beneficial aspect of the KHCG has been getting the opportunity to explore topics from
multiple perspectives. I have found that even If I am not in the “Hot Seat” I am gaining valuable
information that is relative to my business in some way. KHCG has proven to be a safe space for
me to be vulnerable, increase my self-worth and positively adjust my mindset to get the most out
of the experience. As business owners, we are, without a doubt, our most valuable asset. Investing in ourselves,

stepping outside of our patterns and opening up to fellow business professionals within our field
will absolutely bring fresh perspectives to solve problems and reminders to celebrate wins. You
do not have to do it all or do it all alone, KHCG will be a valuable ally on your journey to
success."

 
-Sunny Cover  
Founder ~ The Boss
The Peekskill Coffee House
Peekskill Coffee Roasting Company
Ryze Collective Inc

 
 
"I've been part of quite a few different mentorship programs, and coaching programs and the Key holder coaching group has by far provided the most value. I loved being part of a group with businesses that are all so different because you learn so much that isn't just applicable now, but what might apply 1 or 2 years down the road. Chris does a great job facilitating the group in a way that everyone feels comfortable contributing, and can be honest and vulnerable. I'm blown away by the generosity of the group!"
-Susannah Winters
Hilton Head Coffee

 

Feb 19, 2024

People don't leave jobs, they leave managers. This is an old but still true saying that, for me, underscores the importance of selecting the right person to take on a management role in the cafe. A bad manager makes the work miserable, and a good manager makes the work rewarding and just like a conductor, orchestrates the talents of the players into a harmonious experience. But how do you find this person and what should you be looking for when it is time to put an manager in place?

This week we are going to discus several key character traits and behaviors you will want to make certain are present in the person you have in mind to be a manager. Your coffee shop's future actually does depend on it!

We cover:

  • Why we get management wrong
  • Your role in a manager's success
  • Personal resilience
  • Patience with change and trust
  • Communication and Self awareness
  • Ability to earn trust
  • Big big picture + detail focus
  • Caring and Kindness

Related episodes: 

 

Want to be a part of a dynamic group of fellow coffee shop owners all working together for each other's success? 

Apply for Key Holder Coaching Group today! 

 

Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Feb 16, 2024

When some people see a need or an opportunity, they dream about who will meet it or make it happen. Others, like today's guest on Founder Friday, task it upon themselves to take action and create the reality they want to see for the benefit of others.

Kymme is owner of Bushwick Grind, a speciality coffee shop and cafe, established in 2015. Here she hosts the 2Fish5Loaves community fridge which provides hundreds of pounds of free food to local residents. She is also a technologist with a tenure of over 30 years in the IT sector, employed with Weight Watchers International for 25 years, currently in the role of Principal Technical Project Manager and is a graduate of Hofstra University School of Business , LI NY.

Over the nearly 10 years Bushwick Grind has been awarded 2022 HEINZ Black Kitchen Cast Iron Trophy, 1010 Wins Small Biz Pitch Competition, 2018 Brooklyn Cornerstone Biz of the Year, and many more honors due to Kymme and her team's dedication to community, quality, and nourishing others through the companies varied services. 

In this episode we will be talking all about how Kymme first started on this journey, what she has learned along the way, and her advice for how to run an impactful people-focused cafe business.

We discuss:

  • The genesis of Bushwick Grind
  • Learning coffee and focusing on simple offerings
  • Community, networking, and taking action to make a difference
  • Introducing food and working with other organisations
  • The importance of having a strong team that vibes with your vision
  • Working full time outside of running the shop. How?!
  • Harnessing the power of ideation to unlock possibilities 
  • Becoming a mentor and paying it forward

Links:

https://www.bushwickgrind.com/

IG: @bushwickgrind

 

Related episodes:


Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your operations, quality, and people. Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

 

Feb 14, 2024

There is nothing as frustrating as working on and getting served from a busy bar that was not designed appropriately. From size, placement, equipment selection, and more, there are many areas to consider when designing a space that runs well. Unfortunately bars get built quickly and without the right kind of thought put in at the start. 

Today on Shift break we will be talking a two of the most important considerations you need to make sure you nail if you want your baristas and the business to mitigate stress and be set up for success 

 

Listen to these related episodes:


OWNERS! DO YOU NEED HELP AT YOUR SHOP?

In my consulting work through KTTS ConsultingLayout and design are one of the main conversations we have. Working to create clarity, understanding, and systems for success in leadership has a compound effect on the rest of the business. Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help your cafe thrive in quality, operations, and people? 

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Feb 12, 2024

Looking back is not only a great way to take stock of how you have developed professionally and as a person, but also to bring back into focus what we have to be thankful for. A couple years back my wife convinced me to let her interview me about my career and along the way we also talk about how coffee brought us together. I typically shy away from telling stories of my own career, opting instead to highlight the guests or the principles we talk about on the show.

But my wife was right, and this conversation was well received when it first came out 2 years back.  

So today we are re-airing this fun episode for your listening pleasure. Let this inspire you to examine your story and to really allow yourself to find joy in the blessing of the people in your life that have joined you along the way!

We cover:

  • How I got into coffee
  • Competitions and how they shaped me
  • Lessons I have learned in my career
  • How we met through latte art
  • The why and how of starting KTTS
  •  

Links: 

Apply for the next Key Holder Coaching Group!

 

Related episodes: 

 

Want to be a part of a dynamic group of fellow coffee shop owners all working together for eachother's success? 

Apply for Key Holder Coaching Group today! 

 

 

Want to run an amazing coffee shop?

Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Feb 8, 2024

It's the age old question, "Should we be able to use our phones behind the bar?". Simple right? Well, yes in some ways but the way we approach answering this question has downstream impact on the overall experience both our staff and guests have in our shops, and in turn how they view the industry itself. 

Today on Shift break we will be talking about why it is best practice to have policies that help us avoid distractions and bad optics behind the bar for the sake of keeping tuned into the day's work, creating a consistently great impression, and being able to manage the details of the service we offer to the guests. 

Listen to these related episodes:


DO YOU NEED HELP IN YOUR SHOP?

In my consulting work through KTTS Consultingmanagement and leadership structures are one of the main conversations we have. Working to create clarity, understanding, and systems for success in leadership has a compound effect on the rest of the business. Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help your cafe thrive in quality, operations, and people? 

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Feb 2, 2024

John Luke Roberston is the founder and roaster at Kings Lane Coffee in West Monroe, LA. You may be familiar with the TV show Duck Dynasty that follows the lives of John Luke's family and their duck call business, Duck Commander. As John Luke grew and pursued his education, he developed a love for coffee and charted his own course by diving straight into owning and running a multi-cafe and coffee roasting business, Railway Coffee. I was honored to get to consult and coach him through the beginnings of this venture and over many years Railway continued to offer great coffee and service through its shops and roasting business, even expanding to a mobile trailer. 

Eventually as life changed, John Luke sold the business but kept roasting and is now pursuing roasting and collaborative prjects through Mapmaker Coffee. Most recently collaborating with the family business and releasing a coffee that quickly sold out.

This is a great conversation detailing an intense and immersive experience entering into the coffee industry and finding a place in roasting, and learning incredibly valuable lessons about coffee, management, business, and connecting with people along the way. 

We cover:

  • Consistency as key in the specialty coffee industry, and importance of training staff
  • Seeking help and delegating responsibilities 
  • Focusing on your strengths and prioritizing your time.
  • Expanding to a mobile operation 
  • Logistical and management challenges
  • Public attention and social media following do not always translate into increased sales
  • Why building a loyal customer base is most important
  • Roasting coffee offers the opportunity to create unique blends and collaborate with others to meet different customer preferences.

Links: 

www.johnlukerobertson.com

@johnluke_robertson 

 

Related episodes: 

 

Want to run an amazing coffee shop?

Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Jan 31, 2024

Can you have too much of a good thing? When it comes to managers and bosses in the coffee shop the answer is a resounding and exasperated YES! Why do we do needlessly multiply leaders in the shop like Oprah giving our free cars and as a result frustrate our staff and the leaders themselves?

Today on Shift break we will be talking about the issue of having too many leaders and managers in the shop, why it is a problem,  and what a healthy approach to delegating leadership looks like. 

Listen to these related episodes:


DO YOU NEED HELP IN YOUR SHOP?

In my consulting work through KTTS Consultingmanagement and leadership structures are one of the main conversations we have. Working to create clarity, understanding, and systems for success in leadership has a compound effect on the rest of the business. Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help your cafe thrive in quality, operations, and people? 

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Jan 30, 2024

Coffee competitions have grown to be a dominant force for how professionals and consumers alike view the role of a barista, the industry, and coffee itself. Mindsets, businesses, and the supply chain itself has been shaped by the influence of competitions and today, understanding this world is critical to understanding coffee. 

To talk about this today we are joined by one of the most respected, prolific, and knowledgable WCE Competition head judges out there, Scott Conary!

As Owner of award-winning Caffe Driade, Perennial & Open Eye Café in Chapel Hill, NC; along with Wholesale Roastery Carrboro Coffee Roasters; Scott Conary has had many opportunities to travel, teach and learn about coffee production, harvest, selection, blends and trends for the last 25+ years. He is an active educator in the Industry in most all disciplines and consults for companies, restaurants, and cafes nationally & around the world while also serving as a WCE Representative and Certified Head Judge for the World Barista Championship since 2005. He has been a head Judge & Instructor for the Alliance for Coffee Excellence & the Cup of Excellence program since 2015. Scott trains Barista’s and coffee professionals as a consultant, in the U.S. and around the world, for skill, knowledge and competition.

In this episode we get to discuss competitions, judging, what makes a "good" barista, and the role these things have played and continue to play (both good and bad) in shaping the environment we operate in

We cover:
  • The Mentorship Aspect of Competitions
  • The Evolution of Competitions and the Role of Judges
  • The Influence of Baristas and competitions on the Supply Chain and Public Perception of Coffee
  • The Universal Takeaways from Competitions
  • Defining a "Good Barista"
  • The Importance of Connection and Care
  • Technical Innovation and Connecting with Customers
  • Utilizing Innovation and Making a Connection
  • Expanding Beyond Barista Competition
  • Aligning with Organizations and Seeking Transparency
  • Celebrating Coffee and Affecting Change
  • Progress through Relationships and Collaboration
  • Getting Involved and Opening Doors

Want to run an amazing coffee shop? Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

 

Jan 25, 2024

Caring for people and their experience, both as employees and as customers, is at the heart of a successful coffee shop. In order to consistently pursue that, an operator needs to have a strong grounding of personal values that directs their decisions and helps them weather the storms of entrepreneurship. Today we are talking with someone whose mission to facilitate community, caring, and connection through coffee has been a driving force behind the success of his company. 

Nick Kassouf is the founder and owner of Tru Bru Organic Coffee and Humbowl Juice bar. With la roastery and locations in Orange, CA and Laguna Hills, CA, plus Henderson, NV, Nick and his team are keeping busy providing nourishing and meaningful spaces for their guests to slow done and enjoy coffee and good company. 

In the years of operating and growing the coffee business and starting the juice bar, Nick has had to grow just as much personally. Today we will be exploring the story of Tru Bru and how this family run business runs and the why behind the operations that has led to their success. 

I love the focus Nick has on creating a business that delivers more than just a product but reinforces a way of life that I think we all could benefit from adopting. 

We discuss:

  • Family History and Origins of True Brew
  • Creating a people-first culture and focusing on hospitality 
  • Hiring and Behavioral-Based Interviewing
  • Choosing the right people who embody the mission and values of the business 
  • Being willing to lead from the front and develop oneself in all aspects of the business 
  • Addressing toxicity and cultural challenges early on to prevent negative impacts on the business and team.
  • Taking action and not succumbing to complacency as the key to maintaining a healthy culture and driving business growth. 
  • Why creating a caring and vibrant culture is crucial for fostering human connection in a coffee shop.
  • Genuineness and a genuine care towards others

Links:

https://trubrucoffee.com/

IG: @TRUBRUCOFFEE

Related episodes:


Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your operations, quality, and people. Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

 

Jan 25, 2024

If I could pick one way to absolutely decimate your culture and drive your employee's morale into the dirt, while also making your customer's squirm, it would be passive-aggressive reactionary nitpicking masquerading as leadership. I get it, you have high standards and sometimes (lots of times) you feel like pulling your hair out when you see things that don't measure up. The questions is, how can you retain a high standard while also not inadvertently publicly shaming your staff in the process? 

Today on Shift break we will be talking about the scourge of nitpicking bosses, why we can veer into this self-sabotaging territory, and what steps we can take to create a healthier culture where we address issues in a people-first and patient way.

 

Listen to these related episodes:


In my consulting work through KTTS Consultingmanagement and leadership structures are one of the main conversations we have. Working to create clarity, understanding, and systems for success in leadership has a compound effect on the rest of the business. Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help your cafe thrive in quality, operations, and people? 

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Jan 23, 2024

In our quest for success in the coffee shop business we embrace the busy and frenetic pace that is assumed as necessary to bring us fulfillment. As we work we can often lose touch with the thing that drove our passion in the beginning. While scaling and ambition have many benefits, there always remains the need to connect with deep and meaningful things where skill intersects with heart.

It is this simplicity and vibrancy that now drives today's returning Guest to the show, Charles Babinski at his new shop, Cafe 143 in Sydney.

Charles Babinski is the former U.S. Barista Champion and the co-founder and former co-owner of the legendary G&B Coffee and Go Get Em Tiger in L.A. In his long and storied career Charles has reached the peak of competition and business success and has now scaled down to pursue a more simple and personally rewarding expression of coffee and coffee service through Cafe 143. 

This is a wonderful window into the arc of a career that will be very instructive for new business owners and verans alike. 

We cover:

  • Reflecting on career decisions
  • The value of intimate focus
  • Why scaling a business can lead to a loss of connection and impact on a personal level
  • Transitioning to a new opportunity and building cafe 143 in Sydney
  • Applying past experiences and expertise and setting up the business and decision-making
  • Creating a vibrant coffee bar
  • Measuring success and ongoing development
  • The Importance of Education and Communication
  • How success in the coffee industry is measured by the feedback and trust of customers.
     

Related episodes: 

Want to run an amazing coffee shop? Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Jan 18, 2024

In order to have engaged baristas, owners and managers must first be willing to engage. Unfortunately we have a habit of stifling questions and feedback from the group of people who live closest to the systems we create and treat questions as either inconveniences, or in many cases, threats.

Today on Shift break we will be talking about how questions are an integral part of engagement, innovation, and trust leading to a better coffee shop that is built from a place of good faith communication vs bad faith assumptions and preemptive dismissal.

Listen to these related episodes:


In my consulting work through KTTS Consultingmanagement and leadership structures are one of the main conversations we have. Working to create clarity, understanding, and systems for success in leadership has a compound effect on the rest of the business. Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help your cafe thrive in quality, operations, and people? 

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Jan 17, 2024

When we think of the craft of coffee we tend to think only in terms of the bean and beverage itself. The whole value chain of coffee has benefited greatly from continued emphasis on transparency and today we have the ability to track down almost every detail and variable of a coffee to accurately determine what went into the resulting cup. But what about systems and operations that lead to that cup in your customers hand?  If a coffee tastes off, we strive to investigate, diagnose, and adjust.  When we run out of an item, have abad service encounter, can't keep the cafe clean, have inconsistency between staff etc. everything is suddenly opaque. This is a failure to invest in operations as an equally important craft and it is killing your cafe. 

Today we are going to be talking about how, if you are a coffee shop operator, then operations has to be your craft, and what steps you can take to begin being just as good at dialing in the cafe as you are at dialing in a coffee. 

Related episodes: 

Want to run an amazing coffee shop? Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Jan 16, 2024

As a roaster your career can go through many different unique phases, all of which will tech you different things about the craft, the business, leadership, and even entrepreneurship. Not least among the things you learn is how to use both resources and constraints as opportunities to serve others and grow as a roaster. These are the kinds of experiences that today's guest has had in the industry and today we will explore those career phases and what they taught him. I am so pleased to welcome Leigh Wetzle, Cofounder and roaster for Cedar coffee to Rate of Rise! 

Leigh Wentzel is Co-founder and Head roaster for Cedar Coffee Roasters. He has been in the industry since 2014 so coming up to 10 years spent the majority of his coffee career working for Rosetta Roastery in various roles. 
 
Leigh started as a coffee delivery driver/part-time barista transitioned to full-time barista, head barista/cafe manager, and ended up as their roaster and roastery manager. Along the journey, they won Roastery of the Year 2018 and 2019 with Rosetta and then last year they won Best New Roastery with Cedar Coffee Roasters

In this conversation we discuss the lessons learned going from new roaster, roastery manager, starting Cedar, renting time on someone else's roaster, and now what is going into planning Cedar's own roastery.

Links:

https://cedarcoffeeroasters.com/

@cedarcoffeeroasters

Related episodes:

Subscribe to Roast Magazine!

https://www.roastmagazine.com/subscribe

Visit www.roastertools.com for the best software to help you run a roastery!

Jan 11, 2024

The most important thing in coffee...is people. More to the point, managers and owners prioritizing hiring and caring for the right people, and baristas embracing taking responsibility for their own careers and how they show up in the shop vs blaming others for their lot in the industry. 

On today's Shift Break we are going to be getting straight to the heart of what is important for managers and owners to know in hiring and caring for a team, and what is critical for baristas to know if they want to advance anywhere they happen to be. 

I feel that this Shift Break is by far the one of the most important in terms of the kind of force-multiplying effect implementation of these ideas will have on the industry. 

Related episodes:

In my consulting work through KTTS Consultingmanagement and leadership structures are one of the main conversations we have. Working to create clarity, understanding, and systems for success in leadership has a compound effect on the rest of the business. Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help your cafe thrive in quality, operations, and people? 

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

Jan 9, 2024

The world of professional specialty coffee can be both inspiring and intimidating with many customers and new baristas feeling lost in the mix of rules, methods, and information. How can we create a great experience for guests and staff who all really want to enjoy coffee and find their place in it?

Today we get to learn from the story of someone whose career in coffee took him from curious customer, to barista champion, and finally to teacher and business owner, all along the way finding his identity in coffee firmly rooted in providing the kind of hospitality that won him over at the start.

Winston Thomas is 33 years old and grew up in the small suburb of Strand in Cape Town. He studied Civil Engineering at CPUT but developed an interest in coffee after reading a letter in his local newspaper of a woman complaining that there was no good coffee in Strand/Somerset West. This sparked his interest in coffee and during his studies he completed a barista course. This changed his whole perspective on coffee and after completing his National Diploma in 2014 decided to work in coffee full time. Since then he has managed to win the South African Aeropress Championship in 2016, the Western Cape Barista Championship for 2017, 2018 & 2020, the South African Barista Championship in 2017, 2018 & 2020 title as well as the Africa Barista Championship title for 2019. He now owns and runs a coffee training and consulting business called Winston Douglas Coffee and a Coffee Roastery Called Cedar Coffee Roasters.

 

In this episodes you will learn about:

  • Winston's entry into coffee and how his engineering mind helped him discover higher levels
  • Curiosity and a desire to understand how things work are valuable traits in the coffee industry.
  • Barista competitions can provide opportunities for growth and learning, but it's important to maintain a sense of humility and not let success cloud one's perspective.
  • Hospitality as a fundamental aspect of coffee service
  • Why baristas should strive to create meaningful experiences for customers.
  • Building confidence and finding one's identity in the industry 
  • The blessing and burden of winning
  • Avoid overemphasizing fame and titles in the industry
  • How having control over the variables in coffee brewing enhances the hospitality experience.
  • Creating an authentic coffee experience specific to a region or culture is a challenge worth pursuing.
  • How disconnecting from social media can foster creativity and originality in coffee 

Links:

@cedarcoffeeroasters

@winston_douglas

www.cedarcoffeeroasters.com

www.winstondouglascoffee.com

 

Related episodes: 

Hire Keys to the Shop Consulting to work with you 1:1 to transform your coffee shop operations, quality, and people.

 

Custom consulting for your unique business.

Schedule a free discovery call now!

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min

 

Thank you to our amazing sponsors!

Get the best brewer and tool for batch espresso, iced lattes, and 8 minute cold brew! www.groundcontrol.coffee

 

The world loves plant based beverages and baristas love the Barista Series! www.pacificfoodservice.com

Jan 5, 2024

Having high standards is part of what it means to be in specialty coffee. While it is true that we need to have reasonable tolerances built into our expectations, we also need to be specific in our communication, resourcing, and expectations so people know what it is they are aiming for in the cafe. 

On today's Shift Break we talk about we we should be approaching setting and meeting standards in the shop and how your example and follow through is integral to your teams success. 

Related episodes:


In my consulting work through KTTS Consultingmanagement and leadership structures are one of the main conversations we have. Working to create clarity, understanding, and systems for success in leadership has a compound effect on the rest of the business. Would you like to work with me 1:1 to help your cafe thrive in quality, operations, and people? 

Click below for a discovery call and lets have a conversation! 

https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min


Thank you to out sponsors!

Custom branded apps for your coffee shop: www.espressly.co

 

The best and most revered espresso machines on the planet: www.lamarzoccousa.com

 

 

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