Keys To The Shop : Equipping Coffee Shop Leaders

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 meetings for the right things. 
You might end up with fewer but better and more effective meetings as a result of today's episode. 
KEYS TO THE SHOP ALSO OFFERS 1:1 CONSULTING AND COACHING!
If you are a cafe owner and want to work one on one with me to bring your shop to its next level and help bring you joy and freedom in the process then email 
[email protected]
of book a free call now: 
https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min 
 
Related episodes: 
463: Tips on Having the Right Meetings
Tips for Conducting Great Staff Meetings
583: Unifying Teams Across Multiple Cafes
Avoid These Cafe Meeting Mistakes

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 Founder Friday we get to sit down with my friend and coffee legend, Sammy Piccolo, of Caffe Artigiano, and now owner of Prado Cafe in Vancouver Washington.

Sammy Piccolo has spend nearly 3 decades in the coffee world. A 4x Canadian Barista Champion, The firs World Latte Art Champion, and 3x top 3 finisher at World Barista Championships including coming in 2nd in

After Sammy's brothers Vince and Mike founded Caffe Artigiano in 1999, Sammy immediately jumped on board. Artigiano championed progressive espresso culture, popularized latte art in Canada, and innovated service styles in their massively busy shops. Many future owners and champions came from that cafe.

Sammy took over Prado Cafe in 2012 and has grown it to a fleet of almost 10 shops with a decidedly more simple and minimal approach with a heavy emphasis on hospitality and in house baking.

Today we get to look back to the early days and talk with Sammy about his journey, the lessons he learned, his opinions and insights into the industry and competitions, and the things he believes are at the root of success for cafe operations.
Links:
https://www.instagram.com/pradocafe/
https://pradocoffee.com/
 
KEYS TO THE SHOP ALSO OFFERS 1:1 CONSULTING AND COACHING!
If you are a cafe owner and want to work one on one with me to bring your shop to its next level and help bring you joy and freedom in the process then email 
[email protected]
of book a free call now: 
https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min 
 
Related episodes: 
544: Love Coffee, Control Caffeine w/ 2013 WBC Champ Pete Licata of Caffeine Control Coffee
391 : Founder Friday! w/ Megan Wilson of Spuds Coffee in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
327: Founder Friday! w/ Phuong Tran of Lava Java

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 success, and the balance needed to not be constantly worried about how productive you are, but rather, if you produced something of value that you have the ability to stop and enjoy.
 
KEYS TO THE SHOP®  1:1 CONSULTING AND COACHING
If you are a cafe owner and want to work one on one with me to bring your shop to its next level and help bring you joy and freedom in the process then email [email protected]
OR... book a free call now 
https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min 
 
Related Episodes: 



Sacrificing Productivity
3 Keys for Work-life Balance
SHIFT BREAK: Rest and Meaningful Work
 
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

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 to sit down with the Head of Coffee Education at Cafe Imports, Dylan Siemens to talk about the newly released free educational resource, ED+U!
Dylan Siemens is the Head of Education at Cafe Imports and the creator of ED+U. He began his coffee career in 2012 as a barista and then Head of Education at Onyx Coffee Lab, where he trained hundreds of baristas and competed nationally, winning the U.S. Brewers Cup in 2017. Over that decade, he gained firsthand insight into how difficult it is for small businesses to maintain high-quality training and how much young professionals benefit when knowledge is made available to them.
Dylan joined Cafe Imports in 2022 to help revitalize the company's education program. Building on Cafe Imports' extensive knowledge library, he created ED+U, a platform designed to make professional coffee education accessible to everyone. He doesn't think of himself as the source of ED+U's material, but as the collector and organizer of knowledge from countless people across the supply chain and within Cafe Imports who helped build it.
We discuss:
How coffee retail, competition training, and the transition to green coffee shaped his world view on coffee education
Systemized coffee education and workflows
Understanding the coffee supply chain and green buying
The role of education in industry growth and retention
How the baseline knowledge of coffee advances individuals, companies, and the industry as a whole
The platform of ED+U and how it engages the student to encourage understanding
Applying education in the real world
Links: 
ED+U Educational Platform
www.cafeimports.com
 
KEYS TO THE SHOP ALSO OFFERS 1:1 CONSULTING AND COACHING!
If you are a cafe owner and want to work one on one with me to bring your shop to its next level and help bring you joy and freedom in the process then email 
[email protected]
of book a free call now: 
https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min 
 
Related episodes: 
020 Joe Marrocco : Transparency, Origin Knowledge,and Your Shop : How to approach and apply coffee origin information to enhance, not detract, from the cafe experience
481 : Exploring Sensory Analysis Using "The Coffee Rose"/ Ian Fretheim, Director of Sensory Analysis at Cafe Imports
You Need to Prioritize In-House Training!

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 the process! 
 
KEYS TO THE SHOP®  1:1 CONSULTING AND COACHING
If you are a cafe owner and want to work one on one with me to bring your shop to its next level and help bring you joy and freedom in the process then email [email protected]
OR... book a free call now 
https://calendly.com/chrisdeferio/30min 
 
Related Episodes: 



 
591: The Problem w/ Focusing On The Numbers vs The Guest Experience
 
525: Encore: Focusing on What is Essential w/ Greg McKeown
SHIFT BREAK: Focusing on the Whole, Not the Part
 
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