Keys To The Shop : Equipping Coffee Shop Leaders

Are you open minded when it comes to coffee? How open minded do you need to be? What is the difference between being ignorant or dismissive of a type of coffee and simply having a preference?  Choosing the right and best coffees to present to your customers is both easier and harder than it has ever been. As we navigate through a sea of options with limited time and budgets for purchases we need t...

The pressure and business of the daily work can easily blind us to the impact that we have on the greater reality of the "Industry". We often think of the industry as existing outside our own shops but the reality is that our we are the industry and ever decision we make as individual professionals and cafes cultivate wha the industry becomes.  Today we will be talking about the influence our mind...

Small businesses like coffee shops are known for their ability to be resourceful and get things done with what they have. However, when you set out to open a shop or create a new initiative in an existing coffee bar, there can be a tendency to reflexively buy in the things you will serve and to under-explore doing or making some things yourself.   In today's shift break we will talk about some of...

What happens when we allow ourselves to get caught up in comparing ourselves and our businesses to those around us? The simple answer is that we stifle growth and kill off the joy of what we have and who we are doing it all for.  Way back in 2017 we released an episode called "Death by Comparison" that explores this idea and I thought now would be a good time to bring it back. Why? Simple. Our abi...

This month's Founder Friday has a TON of heart! The story of Heartwood Coffee Roasters is on of perseverance, constance in values, and a deep dependency and connection to amazing people. Today we will be talking with Heartwood founder Jim Sanders who realized the dream of leaving a long and successful but unsatisfying career to do something he was truly passionate and energized by. Coffee. Jim San...

This time of year I am thinking about what I am thankful for and also I am thinking about how hard it is to enter into thankfulness vs other more accessible emotions and mental states. So much of this, to my mind, has to do with the all consuming nature of a business like coffee. When you own your own business or you are so passionate and invested in your role and place in the industry it can be e...

Back in 2018 at a Coffee Fest in Baltimore I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing Stephen Zinnerman, owner and founder of (along with his wife Natasha) The Coffee Enthusiast: A Brewing Company (TCE).  Back when we first met on the show floor, he was just starting TCE and since then they have experienced A LOT of growth both in their family and in the business, especially on the roasting si...

Where do we even start when choosing tools for our roastery? There are an incredible number of options from basic and inexpensive -to complex and costly. In the most recent issue of Roast Magazine, today's guest, Kat Melheim gives us an outline of tools and resources through the entire roasting process that can help clarify this dilemma.  Kat Melheim (she/her) is a roaster, barista, artist, and wr...

In competition we stress about the performance and we practice the skills repeatedly in order to be able to do well on the day. While this approach is needed, there is another approach to preparation that goes deeper and helps ensure that, no mater what you are wanting to do better in (Latte art, management, leadership, etc) you will show up consistently and with minimal stress. Today we will be t...

Do you feel like you need to be good at everything in order to be a good leader? That is a pretty common thought but the fact is that this way approach to leadership stifles both you and those you lead. Instead we should focus on what qualities will allow us to lead people with different skills than us effectively. Today I want to talk about six things that we develop in succession as leaders in t...

Hustle culture teaches us that we should be working pretty much all the time. In order to succeed we need to sacrifice a lot and where the limit is nobody quite knows. What happens too often is we only really start to back off when we burn out but by then it's too late.  Recently I was ask by an attendee at Coffee Fest, "How can I get over feeling guilty for taking a day off?" That is a heart brea...

Training and education is an ongoing process. Not just for those we are training but also for ourselves as trainers and educators. If we adopt the same type of "always learning" mentality we want to see in other, then the way we understand and conduct training will change over time. Today we will be exploring training and education through the career journey of someone who has crafted several trai...

How we think of money and its place in our coffee shop's culture will have huge implications for how your staff either engage or disengage with the success of the store. The first step is to examine our mindset and then connect the metrics to meaningful outcomes.  Today on shift break we will chat about how we can shift the conversation around metrics and money from secrecy to celebration.  Relate...

Making a decision on an espresso machine can come with a lot of stress and uncertainty. With so many different options, configurations, styles, and promises made by manufactures it is hard to know that you will be happy with what you end up with. On top of that, will it be able to serve the needs of the business? Really it boils down to wants, needs, and the balance of the two. Today we are going...

"We are the only coffee shop in our town that serves this!" I will bet that you have thought or said this, or some version of this phrase, yourself as you have planned or run your business. Being the only one to have something is exhilarating at first, but then it tends to fade as the thing we thought would be our defining differentiator, becomes more available and common.  Today on Shift Break we...

Have you ever wondered how  you can get your staff energized and highly invested in the success of your business? This is one of the struggles that a lot of coffee shop owners have. Turns out the best solution for this challenge is to give your staff a real stake in the outcomes of the business and trust them like partners. Today we will be exploring Open Book Management and The Great Game operati...

This Founder Friday is such unique success story!  What started as a dream between two best friends (one an actor, the other a classical opera singer) has now been a 7 year coffee journey that is easily the most important and rewarding performance of their lives. From a humble garage to now an award winning roastery with 4 cafes and countless culinary collaborations, we will be diving into the sto...

Confrontation and difficult conversations are things we tend to avoid. One of the outcomes of this is an increasingly passive-aggressive style of management that seeks to take care of the issue without having to face it.  Today on Shift Break we will be talking about this common issue in coffee shops and how we can reframe confrontation and do away with passive aggressive management for good.  Rel...

Few things are as essential to the global barista community as Barista Magazine. For 16 years they have been "Serving people Serving Coffee"  and advancing the knowledge, craft, and profession of the barista with every issue. Barista Magazine gives a platform and voice to the vibrant and amazing people who make amazing coffee and today we get to talk with the founders, Sarah Allen and Kenneth Olse...

This question gets brought up often when people are discussing their plans to open a coffee shop. The answer, as you might expect, is not as easy as saying yes or no. Ultimately we need to explore what is behind the question. Why is it being asked and how can you answer it for yourself.  Today on Shift break I will be giving you my perspective on this question in hopes that it encourages you to pu...

Italian coffee has shaped how the world understands coffee and cafe culture. These days there is a movement to take the traditional Italian way of of getting a coffee and elevate the quality and the experience making it a truly specialty coffee experience. At the heart of that movement is Aroma Caffe todays guest, Alessandro Galtieri.  Alessandro has owned and operated Aroma Caffe since 1994 and h...

How coffee is processed after harvest has an incredible impact on the final quality in the cup. Today we have the luxury of choosing form  a wide variety of processing techniques. Whether you are a roaster or a farmer, understanding what these methods contribute to the coffee as well as their impact on the environment, and the industry is critical.  On this episode of RoR from Roast Magazine, we w...

It seems like we as an industry want two conflicting things. On the one hand we want baristas to create excellent drinks and to come to work with the mentality that they will not just be on autopilot and phone it in. On the other hand, we have a tendency to believe that the right configuration of recipes and equipment will solve the problem.  Today on Shift Break we will be discussing why machines...

Our coffee shops are the sum total of many different small and large things. When business gets going it can be easy for some of the simpler and more nuanced elements of running a coffee bar to fall by the wayside. The impact these have over time can be and is felt by both your staff and your customers.  Today you and I will be covering ten ways you can upgrade how your employees and patrons exper...

The question of who to promote to available positions is one that coffee shop operators wrestle with a lot. As with any hiring decision, we can make great choices based on solid reasons or we can make a choice we will regret later that was based on shaky reasoning. One of those not so great reasons to promote someone is that they are "next in line" Today on Shift Break we will explore the idea of...