Keys To The Shop : Equipping Coffee Shop Leaders
A coffee podcast providing coffee shop owners and leaders with insights, inspiration, and the tools needed to grow and advance their coffee business or career. It features interviews with experts both in and outside the coffee industry, delivering practical advice on ownership, optimization, profitability, barista work, employee culture, management, scaling, leadership, and personal development.
Episodes
SHIFT BREAK! Every Manager Should Have This Trait
We are notorious in coffee for promoting people into management based only on technical skills or that they might not be quite as unreliable as others on the team. We also rush good people who need more time to develop resilience into the position and set them up for failure. In order to make good decisions, there are many traits we need to look for in a a manager, but one in particular is importa
613: Challenges and Opportunities in Changing the Industry w/ Writer Sarah Charles of Underscore Communication
Today we have access to information about the world of coffee that is unprecedented. At times it can be overwhelming to consider all the areas of the coffee industry that need fixing while we also work daily to care for those we have immediately with us. The trick is to tune into sources that convey not just the reality of the problem, but can also feature stories that showcase hope as we work to
SHIFT BREAK! Getting The Hint From Your Customers
Sometimes we hope against hope that we can eventually win the customer over to that one flavor, those later hours of your cafe, or the new menu item that the internet said was a sure-fire winner. Whether it is our own pride or some other reason, we can hang on to things a bit too long and damage our business in the process. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the signals your customers
612: Founder Friday! w/ Yaren Maya of Cafeto Cacao in Oaxaca, Mexico!
I am so glad that I came across this jewel of a cafe in Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, Mexico. We hear often about direct trade relationships, local sourcing, excellent hospitality, and servant leadership all as aspirations of mindful operators. This place is living these aspirations as a part of the daily rhythm. Coffee and Cacao from their backyard. Signature drinks and a food menu made from ingredients d
611: What Colin Harmon Knows About Growing Coffee Shops!
As hard as starting a coffee shop can be, growing that shop is where the real work begins. The industry is riff with examples of cafes and roasteries that have suffered and even failed as a resulting how they approach growth. The industry also has many whose businesses have grown well but we can only admire their work as outsiders to the work that was done to get there. Enter Colin Harmon. Just l
SHIFT BREAK! Are You Ready To Scale?
As time goes on, opportunities to grow your business will present themselves and you need to make a decision on whether you will say yes, no, or not yet. In order to make a good decision there are a few things you should consider. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about six areas of your current business that need to be healthy in order to set your next venture up fopr success. Whether it
610: What People Love and Hate in a Coffee Shop |Research Results from Chicago Coffee Fest
What do customers love and hate about coffee shops? It feels like a question that is too easy to answer and as a result I believe we do not spend nearly enough time researching it. This past weekend I spoke in Chicago at Coffee Fest. In preparation we analyzed the most positive reviews and negative reviews of the worst rated and best rated cafes on Google and Yelp in the Chicago area. The results
SHIFT BREAK! Why You Need To Cross-Train Staff
In too many cafes we find staff trained only in the areas they work in with minimal to no knowledge or understanding in other parts of the business. This derails a cafes growth and effectiveness. Staff in the front are not equipped to speak with understanding and confidence to customers and those those who work in the back or in production areas are isolated from the up-steam results of their work
609: Lessons On Running a True Community Space w/ Blew Kind of D'griot Cafe | Philadelphia, PA
More than just a 3rd space, some cafes are platforms for ideas, catalysts for change, and a space specifically organized and designed to grow and nurture their communities. Led by people with deep convictions and a vivid vision for what can be, these spaces transform and help support the community beyond the coffee. Today we get to catch up with someone who has spend decades pouring into her
SHIFT BREAK! Why It's Hard To Find Good Help These Days
We have heard this phrase before and, if we are honest, we have said it a couple times too. The statement is problematic since it assumes that the world around us is the reason we can't seem to find the help we want. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about why it seems like we can't find good help, and the reality of how our own behaviors, lack of preparation, and well thought through system
608: The Best Behaviors for Building Resilient Cafe and Roastery w/ Tracy Allen of Brewed Behavior Consulting
Our businesses are the results of the small and large decisions we make over the years. It is our behavior in the business that ultimately determines the success and Impact we can realize. Some have said that the 4th wave is ,marked by more passionate coffee balancing that passion with good business practice and strategy. Today will be talking with someone who has been hugely influential in teach
Founder Friday! w/ Amos Gillespie of Wheelhouse Coffee, Kentville, Nova Scotia, CA
The best coffee businesses are built on solid values, local community, and small consistent steps taken toward deeper connection through hospitality and excellence in the product. The story of Wheelhouse Coffee is one that demonstrates the power of intentional people-first work over time and what happens when you make growth a conversation with those your serve. I am thrilled to get to talk with
SHIFT BREAK! You're Only as Good as Your Worst Drink
It may seem unfair, but it is the truth. Customer hold a special place in their brains for negative experiences. Don't we do the same? And when do most of these lower quality experiences tend to take place? Usually when we are the busiest and have the greatest opportunity to build a good reputation. It's diabolical! On today's Shift Break we will be talking about why you are only as good as your
605: What To Do When You've Been Promoted To Manager
Congratulations! You have been made the cafe manager! Now what? Well, you are now occupying one of the most critical roles in all of coffee retail. As a leader you have a lot of growth opportunities and can make a massive difference as you serve the company, the staff, and the customers. The first six months - a year is a pretty critical time where you either build trust and establish healthy outl
SHIFT BREAK! Addressing "Bad Apples" On Your Staff
Nothing kills cafe culture like an a staff member who is a bad fit for their role. Often this manifests in work performance issues that are felt by customers, coworkers, and leaders alike. It brings people down. The diabolical thing is that the most common response cafe leadership has is to simply wish it away and let it go on far too long. Meanwhile a toxic or ill fit employee continues (whether
Special! Interviews From Coffee Fest NYC 2026! w/ Rachel Apple and Ivana Chan (Raise the Bar), Jeremy Lyman (Birch Coffee), Lauren Tran (Bahn by Lauren)
Every Coffee Fest we sit down with presenters and speakers to talk about their field of expertise and learn from their experience in coffee. This last NYC Coffee Fest we were privileged to get to chat with four dynamic professionals and discuss everything from barista education and community, social media strategy, and how to run a world class bakery and coffee bar. We start with Ivana Chan and
604: 5 Habits Holding You and Your Team Back
Habits we develop around work and leadership can serve to help us grow, or they can hold us back from growth. Many leaders unintentionally develop habits that feel like the right thing in the moment, but in the end actually undo progress and move things backwards in the cafe's operations, culture, and quality. Today we are going to dive into five habits that I have seen damage and hold back busine
SHIFT BREAK! Why You Will Always Be A Small Coffee Shop
Our image of who we are as a business is not necessarily the same as that of our customer. We see all the inside gears and pulleys that hide beneath the surface. We see the scope and organizational diagram of the cafe, the roastery, mobile cart, online sales, and multiple locations. We see a brand, while they see just a small coffee shop. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about how no ma
603: Innovation, Progress, and your Coffee Shop: Finding the Signal in the Noise
The words "innovation" and "progress" are the favorite buzz words of our industry, but what do they mean? It is usually a lot of noise around the subject of technology, but rarely related to things that deliver lasting positive change in the cafe. The average shop owner has to wade through a sea of claims and sales pitches all making big claims about their products. In the end, they are left with
SHIFT BREAK! The Mindset of Working Clean
Having a clean cafe and a clean bar is not just a surface level pursuit. The mindset it takes to keep things clean while busy is a discipline that have far reaching benefits extending to the quality of our products, depth of hospitality, and the health of our relationships behind and across the bar. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the mindset baristas and owners need to have in or
602: Renata Henderson | Cxffeeblack | Putting The Heart Back Into Coffee
The success of coffee globally is based on what coffee represents...community. A beverage that facilitates rootedness, growth, and fruiting of relationships through shared conversation over a cup in our shops or your home. But today, we are an industry. And our concerns tend to be exclusively around just the business of specialty coffee. Where is the heart? Today I am honored and excited to pres
SHIFT BREAK! "What's Next in Coffee"
The more we ask this question the more we tend to steal time and consideration away from what we have of value in the present. The coffee shop and the larger industry for that matter, are obsessed with not being left behind and therefore we must constantly disquiet our minds and worry. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the danger of letting this question be the dominant question we
601: Why Your Cafe Staff Meeting Might Be Doomed To Fail
Meetings can be a very useful part of running a cafe. The way we tend to use them though has become a real problem. In fact, rather than helping, even the most well intentioned of meetings, might actually hurt your business if it is being conducted improperly. Today we are going to be diving into why your staff meeting might be doomed to fail and what you can do to make sure that you are using m
600: Founder Friday w/ Sammy Piccolo of Prado Cafe | Vancouver, BC
The world of specialty coffee today owes a lot of its success to those who helped build movements and create opportunities in earlier years. The times where new and actually meaningful advances in coffee shops, coffee craft, and service. There were many people and businesses that were at the forefront of the 3rd wave coffee movement and we get to talk with one of those people today! On this Foun
SHIFT BREAK: Forget Productivity
The hustle of business creates a fear culture where operators worry about their productivity at a near constant rate. We scratch our heads over how to prevent burn-out and talk about work life balance, but what about having a balanced perspective on work? Today on Shift Break we will be talking about how you can shift your view of productivity through clear definitions, willingness to recognize su
599: How To Raise Your Baseline Coffee Knowledge w/ Dylan Siemens | Head of Coffee Education at Cafe Imports
Coffee education is essential for a professional to not just have knowledge needed for their current job, but to add depth, appreciation, motivation, and to prepare them for possible futures in the coffee industry beyond their role today. The next step is to find a place that can supply you with that knowledge in a way that not only delivers facts, but breeds understanding and growth. Today we get
SHIFT BREAK! How To Keep Your Customers Excited
We talk a lot about engaging our customers and spend time, money, and effort to try to capture their attention in a crowded market. With so many things competing for their attention, what can a coffee shop do to keep their customers excited and loyal? Today on Shift Break we will be talking about ways that you can keep your customers excited and engaged without losing sleep or your identity in th
598: When To Quit
Quitting a job is a normal part of any career. Problem is that sometimes we don't know when to quit and hang on too long to ours and even the cafe's detriment. When should you as a staff member quit? What does positive quitting look like? What does recognizing and quitting a bad situation look like? Today on the show we will talk about some of the things to look out for in a coffee shop and in se
597: John Gordon: Developing Institutional Wisdom, Efficiencies, and True Expertise in Coffee
Knowledge about coffee is one thing, but wisdom and true expertise? Well, that is quite another. While knowledge is widely and cheaply available and true wisdom and expertise that makes a business effective is only attained after living and experiencing the realities of the coffee industry over time. The difference is important because it means the difference between effective operations and sol
SHIFT BREAK! Don't Waste Your Presence
Leaders have authority to make decisions, guide, delegate, affirm, coach, and grow the business and those they serve. The presence of a leader is only a benefit when that leader sees their authority as a tool for serving others and embraces a planned approach to using their presnce in the areas of the company that need it the most Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the practical ways y
SHIFT BREAK: Making Leadership A Real Process
Leadership and management are things we talk a lot about, but what does it take to actually make them a real process in the cafe? Most of what is in a job description is either unreasonable and poorly though through, or it is good but there is no real commitment from owners to see that it takes place. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about how we can we make it more than an aspiration and
596: 7 Reasons Why You Have High Turnover
Employee turnover in specialty coffee shops is the most talked about and difficult issue deal with, it has been for a long time. There are many causes for high turnover and sadly owners and managers frequently try to lower turnover with methods that are not effective. This is mostly because the cause specific to your shop has not yet been identified. On today's episode we are going to explore seve
595: Founder Friday | Advocating for Independent coffee shops w/ Peter Dore-Smith of Kaffeine London UK
Creating an excellent cafe experience is a work of commitment and dedication to caring for both the staff and the community that you serve. The coffee shop functions as a cornerstone of a healthy social structure in any city and advocating for it needs to sometimes go beyond the operations of the shop itself but extend into action taken to change the civil environment a cafe operates in. Today I
SHIFT BREAK! Fixing My Face: Why Optics Matter in the Shop
I can hold an average weight business card in the furrow of my brow. Kinda proud of that. However in my career my natural resting face has inspired a lot of "interesting" assumptions. Now, to some degree, there is a limit to what I can do, but in my work I want to make sure that what I want to communicate and display is actually clearly seen and felt. Today on Shift Break we will not just discus
ROR #40 w/ Chris Johnson of Purefi Coffee Roasters, Spring Texas : Roasting Excellent Coffee With Purpose
Roasting and brewing creates opportunity for mentorship and relationships that last longer than the sensory experience of the cup. Seriously pursuing technical excellence is a part of securing this opportunity and today's guest has been on a journey to bring both to the table. On this Rate of Rise we are talking with Purefi Coffee Roasters, Chris Johnson! Chris is the lead roaster and co-founder
594: Encore : Don't Get Stuck: Retraining Staff on New Standards
It is easy to become stuck in the ways that you first learned to do things. Especially if those ways have brought some degree of success. We take comfort in the familiar to the degree that even if it is not working, we will protect the known dysfunction rather than embracing something new better, but not known. Not to mention the fact that we can tend to reject it because we anticipate the resista
SHIFT BREAK: Cupping is Overrated
I love cupping coffee. It is a great way to assess a coffee and learn how to identify defects, attributes, and nuances that allow you to make decisions about buying coffee and how to maintain consistency in roasting. But the issue we have in a lot of coffee is that cupping, a practice designed for the above scenarios, has been miss used in the front of house customer facing world of retail. Today
593: Why You Should Not Manage Gen Z
The favorite past time of many an owner is to gripe about their younger Gen Z staff. Before them it was millennials. Before them it was Gen X, before them...well, you get the idea. For as long as coffee shops have hired employees, leaders have found it challenging to lead and manage a younger work force and the reason given is that there is just something about "That" generation. Well, I have goo
SHIFT BREAK! Become Immune to Fear-Based Coffee Marketing
"Don't get left behind!" It feels like every post trying to sell you on a product relies on fear in order to make the sale. The idea of marketing to "pain points" as they say in the biz, is not entirely wrong since we do in-fact want to provide solutions for real needs. But where things go a step too far is trying to create problems in order to sell the solution. As a coffee shop, you have an oppo
592: The Criteria For The World's Best Coffee Shop
Ranking the best coffee shops in the world is a task that sounds like a neat idea! That is until you realize the sheer impossibility of such a task not to mention the cognitive dissonance required to pretend like the results of such a ranking are in any way definitive or substantive. The world of coffee shops thrives on professional pursuits related to criteria anchored in locality and the nuance
591: The Problem w/ Focusing On The Numbers vs The Guest Experience
Focusing on numbers above guest experience may actually prevent you from achieving the numbers you need to sustain your business long term. Yet still people insist on creating environments in the shop that turn customers into marks to be worked for the sake to extracting as much out of them each interaction as possible so we can see average tickets rise and celebrate record days. In this case, the
SHIFT BREAK! Please Don't Be THAT Kind of Content Creator
Today we are surrounded by content and it is expected of every customer facing brand to strive to create a brand persona and content to reinforce your values and attract others who share those things. The bi-product of this dearth of content is the underlying sense of anxiety, disconnect, and lack of grounding as it seems the more we produce and consume, the emptier we feel. Today on Shift Break
590 : Founder Friday! w/ Patti and Jesse Ventura of Lontra Coffee | Los Angeles, California
When you build a trust through serving people with sincerity and passion, those same people support and uplift you. In the business of the coffee shop, those kinds of relationships are the life giving force that carries owners through the ups and downs of ownership. Today we get to talk to two of our industry's sweetest people whose cafe is built on this very thing. I am so happy to welcome to th
SHIFT BREAK! What We Lose When We Don't Listen
Feedback is all around us. From the customers, staff, and the business itself, we can only make great decisions for the coffee shop when we practice listening to understand. Trouble is we often avoid listening for fear of what we will hear, or because we falsely think we know what someone thinks or that their opinion cannot be helpful due to who they are or what position they hold. Today on Shift
589: How Coffee Sets the Stage For Conversation w/ Actor + Director Grant Garry!
Coffee is a connector. I think we all have seen this in our personal lives, our social lives, and in the community we help facilitate through our shops. In the fast paced often stessful world of cafes and the vocation of coffee, we need to take some time, and leave some room for appreciating the real impact a simple cup can have on people. On today's episode we will be talking all about the ways
SHIFT BREAK! Time Management to Beat Overwhelm
It's a common belief that there are not enough hours in the day to do the work that we need to get done in order to run a good coffee shop. The truth of the matter is that, more than a lack of time, this feeling is a result of poor time management. In particular, not having appropriately set and strategize priorities. Today on Shift Break, we will be exploring a few ways to think about time manag
588: Prioritizing the Right Things as Your Cafe Grows
As a business grows, the relationships in it shift and and evolve. The double edged sword of success and growth in numbers, is a natural pulling away from paying attention to those relationships. IN the end, unless we fight to stay engaged and prioritize the health of our communication and care fro the people that make the cafe possible, it is only a matter of time before things start to go down h
SHIFT BREAK! Have We Made Coffee (and ourselves) Miserable?
In our pursuit of optimization, analysis, scientific rigor, and financial success, we may find ourselves wondering, "where is the life in all of this?" Could it be that in dissecting every inch of our business, we have inadvertently killed it? Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the need to remain connected to and act from the heart. Why we might feel a collective burn out and misery in
587: How To Apply Insights To Your Coffee Bar
Coffee shop insights and resources abound! We have innumerable platforms, tools, and ideas that all have a certain amount of value...if only they are adopted and applied well and consistently to your shop On today's episode, we will be talking about the steps that owners and operators should take to go from revelation to realization when they get insights that can help their business. Too many peo
SHIFT BREAK: Cafes, We Need To Train Harder
The experience of the customer day-in and day-out is often treated as a given. Something that is expected, but not something that is earned. We work to The real focus of our efforts should be on training and resourcing our staff to deliver a consistently excellent product, space, and hospitality experience every time. Are we truly doing that? Today on Shift Break we will be talking about how trai
586: How to Dial In Your Cafe
When we think about dialing-in, we automatically think about coffee. Changing the grind, the recipe, and other inputs and variables all to obtain an ideal outcome. Your coffee shop is not just about coffee though, and that means that other areas of the cafe need to be dialed in in order for the product of the cafe experience to be great. On today's episode, we will be talking about the three area
585: Founder Friday! w/ Tara and Martyn Knight of Southsea Coffee in Portsmouth, UK!
This Founder Friday we feature a couple who has been focused on giving their community excellence and warm hospitality for 13 years! Scaling deeper not wider, Tara and Martyn Knight have steadfastly cultivated something truly beautiful in Southsea Coffee Tara and Martyn Knight are the co-founders of Southsea Coffee in Portsmouth, UK. A community-rooted coffee shop known for speciality coffee, che
SHIFT BREAK! When Changing Things, Pay Attention to the Heart of the Business
Changing things in the cafe tends to focus on image and expression. Maybe we upgrade branding, focus our menu, change lighting, furniture etc. But what is even more important in the quest to make positive changes as your grow, it to pay attention to the heart of the operation that supports everything else. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about how to make sure you are growing both the hea
584: Refining Your Retail w/ Retail Coach Wendy Batten!
In coffee shops, we don't just sell coffee. We sell a variety of retail items that are related to, support, and go with coffee and with our brand. But are we doing as good with our retail as we can be? Are leaving money on the shelf or losing opportunities to serve our guests more with truly well considered, sourced, displayed, and sold retail? Today on the show we have retail coach Wendy Batten
SHIFT BREAK! Embracing the Meaning of Money
There is far more going on behind the scenes of your numbers than just meeting your metrics. The money that flows in and out of the business is the life blood that represents health, trust, activity, and the growth of the whole. Trouble is we either focus on it alone, or we try not to focus on it at all. The best path is the integrated one. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about how we can
583: Unifying Teams Across Multiple Cafes
When you have multiple cafes and a distributed staff, getting everyone on the same page in the operations can be very challenging. In fact, it happens to be the number one reason why businesses with 2+ locations start to see a downturn in quality of product, culture, and guest experience. Today on the show we will be answering a question from the KTTS listening audience about how to unify teams
SHIFT BREAK! How to Think About Quality
Quality of the coffee, experience, service, and just about anything else in the cafe will always be something an owner and leader focuses on. These days we tend to concentrate our efforts on the acquiring of quality, instead of the creation of it. All the potential those great beans, your wonderful staff, and even our space have, is just potential until you take action and render, create, and real
582: Maximizing Existing Opportunities in Your Cafe
Making your cafe run better, improving service, increasing profitability, and leveling up quality and value for your guests naturally brings to mind a host of new and different services, products, and strategies that we believe we need to employ. But the truth is that we often only need to look deeper into the existing opportunities we have to find the solutions we seek. Today on the show we wil
SHIFT BREAK! Maybe You Are Doing Enough For Your Baristas
It seems like the conversation we have around what can be done for staff to create more value, longevity, etc never gets around to a place where you can look at what you are doing and have done and say, you know what, that's pretty good, that is enough. Honestly it feels weird even typing it because we do want to be always maintaining and cultivating value. Today on Shift Break we will be chattin
581: Lessons From "America's Best Coffee House"!
Many years ago in 2012, myself and a small team of people along with Coffee Fest Trade Shows had the pleasure of developing and running a competition called "America's Best Coffee House". The first of it's kind team cafe competition that was, IMO, the most accurate to real cafe work competition ever made. To this day it remains unmatched in showcasing true-to-life barista skills that working bari
SHIFT BREAK! How to Have Healthy Communication Between your Cafe's Departments
It could be roasting, kitchen, drive thru, bakery, or any other area of where special focus is required or different systems and staff work all under the same brand and even under the same roof. When you have multiple departments you need to create a plan to bring prevent silos and promote harmony. Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the methods you can adopt to ensure that the differen
580: Four Cafe Leadership Mindsets to Adopt in the New Year
Entering the New Year is always seen as a time to make good on our intentions that got put on the back burner. Many of those intentions, if acted upon, would absolutely transform our cafes and the relationships in them. What keeps us back from acting upon the things we know to do and following through to see greater fruit from our labor? Today on the podcast we will be talking about 4 mindsets th
SHIFT BREAK! The Difference Between Numbers and Quality Numbers in The Cafe
We all want to see positive growth and good numbers in our cafe. We also want to see the ROI for the effort we put in to generate those numbers. For many, to look at the reports and see profit and everything looking healthy is a sure sign that all is well and we are doing the right things. The issue is that even with a growing profitable business, the numbers don't tell he whole story and can lull
579: How to Really Care For People in the Cafe
How we care for people through our work should be the primary focus. From healthy and strong relationships and systems the help support them, we get healthy and strong businesses and a real chance at a long term sustainable operation. Today we will be talking about some substantive ways that you can care for yourself, the staff, and your customers in ways that create a culture of excellence and m
SHIFT BREAK! New Things are Overrated
Do you feel the pull, the itch, the compulsion to add more, buy more, and create specials and new things for your customers all the time? You are not alone. The industry is filled with cafe that are stuck in a never ending cycle of making, buying, and adding new things so they do not fall out of favor or relevance as though any and every customer or barista is only a hairs breadth away form leavin
578: Founder Friday w/ Matt and Elise Higgins of Origin Coffee Bar, Savannah, GA
I love an origin story where the pluck, confidence, and unwavering belief of the founders for each other and their idea is met with the support, enthusiasm, and positive feedback of the community they set out to serve. They say your calling is where your talents intersect with what people need and today we get to talk with people who have been authoring a story just like that. Very happy today to
577: What You Need to Know About Rural vs Urban Coffee Shops
A listener asked me a question recently about how to approach operating a coffee shop in a rural setting versus a larger city. After a short exchange over email I decided it was some thing that we should probably chat about here on the show. After all, specialty coffee shops are popping up more and more in suburban and rural settings, and there may be some key distinctions to consider. Today we w
SHIFT BREAK! Identifying Values on Shift
The life of your business is going to be determined by how easily and frequently you and your staff can identify, during the workday, behaviors and events that represent the values of your company. The problem is that because we are so busy with the tasks of the work, it makes it difficult for us to identify those times in the work that can help motivate nourish and sustain us. Today on shift brea
576: Financial Stability Using Profit First for Coffee Businesses w/ Kim Logsdon of Caffeinate Your Cash
Many owners struggle to make a profit and to pay themselves. This inevitably will lead to burn out and disillusionment and sadly for many closing down the shop before ever really seeing what it's potential could have been. Making money in your cafe has a lot to do with how well you track and manage what you already make. Enter the Profit First system and the coach who helps apply it to the world
SHIFT BREAK! Is Anyone Else Slow Today?
You read this kind of question mostly from nervous owners who are glued to their screen and anxiously review every data point with bloodshot eyes. Like a nervous flyer, ever bump on the plan is a sure sign of an imminent crash, but here's the thing, it's not. Today on shift break we will be talking about why these kind of questions, while cathartic, actual reinforce a mindset that will rob you o
575: Celebrating Barista Culture w/ Steve Moloney of The Barista League!
For the last 10 years The Barista League has been putting on competition/events that tap into the culture of the working barista and offers a fun environment that also showcases and celebrates the skills of the people who serve customers globally. In the current landscape where competition is increasingly isolated from reality and can easily be seen as a place to conform, perform TBL is a needed b
574: Founder Friday! w/ Mackenzie Cohen of Kittitas Cafe in Kittitas, WA!
If you want to run a great coffee shop, loving people is one of the most important things to have at the foundation of all you do. It is also sometimes the hardest and requires intentional pursuits of a visions and a tenacity that always seeks out ways to improve communication, service, hospitality, and quality to make sure both staff and customers consistently feel the love. I am happy that we g
SHIFT BREAK! What Thankfulness Should Lead To: Thoughts on How Beliefs Inspire Action in the Shop
It is that time of year here in the U.S. where many will reflect on what they are thankful for. In this current age where bad news and reasons to despair abound, it is even ore important to fight for and seek out the good and positive in our lives. But even for those of us who see value in this tradition of listing what we have to give thanks for, it often remains only a once per year thing. On
573: Myths Baristas Believe Part 2
And we are back with the second part of our exploration of common barista myths! I have to say, the main point for both the owner and barista episodes is to encourage everyone to exercise a patience, humility, curiosity, and a sense that there may be more to a story that what we initially see. The culture of coffee shops is shaped on aspirations and passion, but also on assumptions that can damage
SHIFT BREAK! The Urgent Need for Training in Today's Coffee Shop
I was invited to speak recently to a group of coffee professionals on the state of the industry based on what I have experienced through my consulting, career, and interviews. One of the main things I shared was that coffee quality in roasted form is at an all time high. But quality is embarrassingly low. The issue is not the coffee, equipment, access to information, or even money. It is a refusal
572 : Understanding Water For Coffee w/ Maxwell Dashwood
Water for coffee. This is the biggest area of quality control focus that we must always monitor and check to provide constantly excellent coffee. Learning about water can come from various sources and for many busy operators it is tempting to learn a couple things and use that knowledge forever vs continually learning and gaining just as thorough an understanding of water as you do with coffee.
Special Announcement From Chris: New Webinar "Principles for Cafe Success" launching Novemeber 5th
Here is why I am thrilled to be launching this live webinar called "The Keys to the Shop: Principles for Cafe Success". The more conversations and exchanges we have where we get to clarify, fortify, and focus on excellence in things that matter, the better all our businesses become. In the last almost 9 years KTTS has offered free content in the form of the 2x per week podcast to help operators
SHIFT BREAK! Get Your Cafe to Stand Out Without Losing Your Footing
If you listen to every well meaning linkedIn post or biz hack YouTube video you can stand out so much that you actually lose touch with he foundation of your business. Today on shift break we will talk about ways to pursue more customer attention but in a way that reinforces your roots and foundations vs pulling you aways from them. Differentiation Takes Time! 559: Myths Coffee Shop Owners Bel
Special! Interviews From Coffee Fest Orlando 2025! w/ Claudio Martinez (Golden Bush Coffee), Vanessa Jaramillo (Florida Coffee Culture), Maria Esther Thome-Lopez (Coffee Flock), and Katherine Morris (Cherry Coffee Shop)
Time for our last installment of live interviews from Coffee Fest 2025. This time from Orlando, FL USA! We are talking with four awesome professionals about everything from training and tasting, Florida coffee culture and barista work - to career dreams coming true through hard work and faith, and empowering your baristas with distributed management! First we are talking with Claudio Martinez!
571: Worrying and Other Deceptive Replacements for Good Leadership
In my live workshops with owners and teams, coaching calls with clients, and even in interviews here on the show run into many go-to habits that are replacements for healthy leadership. Today we are going to be discussing a few of these mindsets and habits that can easily be a sort of counterfeit for the real deal. The real nefarious thing about each of theses habits is the confirmation bias that
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