Specialty Coffee Retailer

Specialty Coffee Retailer May 2014

Specialty Coffee Retailer is a publication for owners, managers and employees of retail outlets that sell specialty coffee. Its scope includes best sales practices, supplies, business trends and anything else to assist the small coffee retailer.

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6 | May 2014 • www.specialty-coffee.com A C QUALITY I PIQUET'S PRINCIPLES B J P A s a co ee professional, you know that the best way to maintain the delicate avor nuances and aromatics of co ee is to use fresh-roasted co ee and to grind just prior to brewing. If you demonstrate the importance of fresh grinding by doing it for every cup you make in your co ee shop, your customers will be more easily persuaded to follow suit. ey will see you put your words into action day a er day, drink a er drink, and it will plant a seed in their minds. Some of them will even ask about it, and those are golden opportunities. Make the most of them! If your goal is to truly provide excellence in customer service then there should be continuity between what you say and what you do. e execution of this concept can help to establish your quality, exclusivity, positioning, and principles all in a single moment. Unfortunately, be it out of fear or laziness, many owners fail by choosing the path of least resistance when it comes to whole bean sales. Once you have earned the position as the quality leader in your market, the rst thing that should matter when it comes to selling co ee is, "Will the co ee be at its best throughout the customer's usage?" As mentioned before, this begins and ends with one thing -- fresh, whole-bean co ee. Whether you pull your co ee o shelf one week, 10 days, or two weeks from date of roasting, have a standard of quality and stick to it. Didn't sell out? Adjust your roasting schedule or nd other uses for your co ee. But you should never sell your customer co ee that is past its prime. Second, the care you have for your co ee should remain consistent whether you are brewing the co ee or espresso for your customer or your customer is purchasing beans to take home to brew themselves. is is why it is best to sell whole bean only. Customers come to you as an expert and by purchasing co ee from you they are placing trust in your expertise. Do everything you can do to assist them in capturing the intended avors of your co ee when they are brewing at home. So rather than missing the opportunity to engage and inform when a customer hesitates in purchasing co ee because they are not yet equipped with a grinder, educate your customers on the importance of fresh ground co ee and explain how avors and aromatics of ground co ee literally disappear with each passing second. O er a small array of adjustable burr grinders available for purchase and make recommendations based on their brewing habits. It is easy to speak about "quality this" and "quality that," but without having the fortitude to guide your customers along the path of culinary co ee, you risk the danger of becoming an appeaser and losing the trust and respect of those who come daily to experience your expertise. Stand rm in your convictions! You can be con dent that by doing these things your customers will look to you as an expert whose integrity is without question. It is by maintaining principles as a long term strategy that you will give your customers the knowledge to open doors to a whole new world of co ee and increase your whole bean sales along the way. Author's Note: Using terms like "quality" or "service excellence" to describe your co ee business is just as real or deceptive as a restaurant touting "farm to table" or "locally grown." Treat your customers with respect. Be honest about what you do and why you do it. SCR John Piquet is a roaster, barista and siphon brewing specialist at ca e d'bollain Salt Lake City; which he co-owns and operates with his beautiful wife Yiching. 06 Piquet Principels SCR0514new.indd 6 5/14/14 9:35 PM

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