Keys To The Shop : Equipping Coffee Shop Leaders

Chocolate and coffee seem to be made for each other! Whether you are having a simple well made mocha or pairing a bar with a single origin espresso, chocolate can compliment, enhance, and make more accessible the specialty coffee we serve. Yet, as much as we know about coffee, we tend to fall short when it comes to this very important part of our shops menu and offerings. This week we are talking...

This week we get to chat with 2014 World Barista Champion from Japan, Hide Izaki! We talk about his path to the WBC, the distinctive traits of the Japanese coffee culture, what has he learned and experienced in his travels , the importance of failure, what is his #1 piece of advice to baristas, and how we can build our industry by listening t the consumer.  It was such an honor to have Hide on the...

We are in a Consumer Revolution! The home barista - coffee brewer- coffee drinker makes up 70% of coffee consumed in the U.S. and has access to a lot of great information, training materials, resources, and gear to help them get a truly great cup of coffee. Unfortunately, there is still a lot of misinformation and bad gear out there making it hard for consumers to consistently get the best we have...

  Pour over coffee is often seen as a sign that you take coffee seriously. It implies a level of quality not usually reserved for plain ol' batch brew. Batch brew is seen as a bit more pedestrian. Customers may even assume that, compared to pour over, batch brew is inferior in quality. The truth? It all depends. Today we take the red pill with past guest Mr. Ryan Soeder, Q.C. & Barista Trainer at...

On this edition of Founder Friday we go to a small town in rural Kentucky to hear about Katie Startzman's venture into bagels, coffee, and the adventures of business ownership! You will leave this conversation energized and encouraged as she shares the details of how she made her vision a reality in Berea, KY.  We talk about hiring, researching your business ideas, how to be ok with spending money...

Fear, frustration, stress...we all have experienced one or more of these feelings when we deal with groups in the cafe. Be they a family, friends, or study group we can sometimes have trouble managing the group dynamic and the chaos that can often accompany it. In spite of all this though the group does not represent a hurdle to jump over  But an opportunity to embrace! On todays show we answer a...

Being a new barista can be both very exciting and VERY stressful. There is an almost never ending list of policies, recipes, practices, and rules that make up this new work of cafe service you are now immersed in. On today's show you and I talk about some essential tips that will help you not only navigate you first few weeks on the bar but advice that will help guide you throughout your entire ca...

In coffee service we pour over the details of the coffee's quality in great detail. Often though we can over look the details that make up a complete coffee experience. The way customers experience our coffee, in no small part depends on how we have looked after the fine points of service in how we present the ourselves, space, and the coffee itself. Today we talk with Casey Underkofler, Assistant...

The SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America) and the SCAE (Specialty Coffee Association of Europe) have recently merged to form the SCA (Specialty Coffee Association) but what does that mean for those of use who work in retail? What are the plans and goals of the SCA when it comes to their retail members? Is joining the Association something you should do for yourself or for your business an...

Today we are talking with noted author, speaker, and researcher, Bruce Tulgan about his powerful book, "It's Ok to be the Boss". We talk about the myths that managers believe that lead to what Bruce calls "The Under-Management Epidemic" and the very practical and simple solutions we can employ to become a great boss, truly empower our people, gain clarity, and create a great work culture at your c...

It's Founder Friday #5 !!! Today we get to talk with Chelsey Walker-Watson, co-owner of Slate Coffee Roasters / a family owned roaster/ retailer in Seattle, Washington. We discuss her amazing 2nd place U.S. Brewers Cup Competition routine, How she got into the coffee industry, the story of Slate Coffee, how they run things, their expansion, and the values that drive them.  Slate is a true gem in t...

Roasters are the heart beat of specialty coffee. They transform the fruit of so many peoples labor into the coffees we know and love. Today we get to hear from none other than the new U.S. roasting Champion himself, Mar Michaelson! Mark is the Head Roaster at Onyx Coffee Lab in NW Arkansas and in this episode he shares about his origin story, his competition experience, and then we talk about 5 th...

Training. At some point in your coffee career you will be called on to train or teach in some form. As well as we might know the craft of coffee, it is often the case that we struggle to find the best way to teach that craft. If you are at all interested in learning how to become a better trainer or educator then this show is going to prove indispensable. To help us explore these things I am thril...

Cheremelle D. Edwards, Founder of "The Coffeetographer"   joins us today to talk about all she has learned and observed through her work documenting arts and culture through the lens of specialty coffee. We talk about the critical role of the small independent cafes, her favorite experiences, what she sees as the future of specialty coffee culture, and what we should focus on to continually provid...

Fresh off his victory in Seattle, Kyle Ramage of Mahlkonig USA took some time to talk with us about the competition. We get into the details of his routine, his drinks, his presentations message, his dry ice frozen coffee and the challenges/lessons he experienced on the road to winning the U.S. Championship title.    LINKS: www.keystotheshop.com www.mahlkonig.com     www.worldcoffeeevents.org www....

I am honored to welcome Colin Harmon for our 4th Founder Friday episode! Colin is a 4 time Irish Barista Champion, 4th place World Barista Championship finalist, and Owner/Founder of 3fe Coffee, one of the world's most innovative and progressive specialty coffee shops located in Dublin, Ireland. Colin is also the author of the new book, "What I Know About Running Coffee shops" , a book detailing c...

Reviews can be a great experience. They can also be frustrating and challenging. They key is in how you go into the review and how you respond to the feedback given. Today we will cover 7 tips that will help you leverage the review to your professional advantage. Performance reviews are a great opportunity for growth and to gain gain clarity on where you are in your career. I hope these 7 tips are...

There is a lot of farm information available to us today in coffee. The question is how do we use that information & what is the line between overloading the customer and enhancing their experience? What purpose does all this knowledge serve? Today Joe Marrocco of Coffee Imports helps us not only answer these questions but also talks about the relationship between the cafe, the producer, and every...

What do you think of when you think of "The Customer"? All too often it brings to mind annoyance, challenges, irritation, and even anger. I recently read an old article that was being newly shared around social media that was the catalyst for this episode. Tons of lists exist stating what we baristas "hate" about customers but what is it that we love about them? We will go much farther in our care...

The future of your shop depends one more than just the coffee you serve, it depends on the people you hire and how you engage and lead them. This determines how they care for each other,  your customer, and your business. In this episode I present a talk I normally share at Coffee Fest  where I give you tips on how you can create a culture that ensures an excellent experience for your staff and gu...

Jonathan Rubinstein, President & Founder of Joe Coffee in NYC and Philadelphia joins us on the show today to talk about coffee business, Hospitality, the keys to their success in growing from 1 store in 2003 to 16 locations today, the recent investment from Danny Meyers', Union Square Hospitality Group , and the challenges and rewards that he has experienced along the way. This episode is jam pack...

The customer experience can make or break your cafe. There are so many seemily small things that can derail the customers enjoyment of your shop. How can we raise the bar and focus our energy on the places that really count? What are some of the main things we do that detract from an other wise great experience? Michael Butterworth , cofounder of The Coffee Compass and Director of Education at Qui...

Sometimes, in spite of doing all the right things and taking all the right steps, advancement just does not happen. Today we talk with Anne Nylander about how to navigate the tricky terrain of leaving your job in pursuit of the next step in your career. We talk about how to bring up the topic with you boss, getting counsel from the right people, making a solid plan, how to maintain relationships t...

We all want to make progress and be fulfilled in our work. For many of us though frustration in our jobs causes us to not take full advantage of our current role to help us get to where we want to be. Today we are talking about some basic (but powerful!) ways to advance and set yourself up for success in your coffee career.    Related Episodes: Ep: 12 "A Journey Into Management and Back w/ Lauren...

So you want to be a better leader or manager? Have we got a show for you! On this episode Eva Attia, the Director of Retail Operations for  Portland Roasting Coffee , is our guest. Eva is just an amazing professional and today she shares her insights & advice gained from 20 years of coffee retail management and leadership, 16 of which was spent at  Pete's Coffee and Tea  where she worked her way u...