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.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/109835
INSIGHT EDITORIAL OFFICE 1030 W. Higgins Road, Suite 230 Attitude adjustments I Visit us online: www.specialty-coffee.com E-mail: specialtycoffee@m2media360.com EDITORIAL STAFF pan demetrakakes, editor n late 2011, actor Alec Baldwin ("30 Rock") drew some attention, and snickers, when he tweeted his pique about the "attitude problem" of an unfortunate barista he encountered at a Starbucks in New York City. When Alec Baldwin complains about an attitude, it's safe to say that there's some attitude going on. Coffee is one of those consumer products that, for better or worse, comes in a huge range of quality. It follows that there will be the occasional disconnect between what is available at some of the higher-end coffeehouses, and the sophistication level of a given customer. So what's the best thing to do when a customer gazes up at your menu board, with all the drink options and varietals, and gets that stunned-bunny look? And you, or your staff, just know he or she probably is used to office-machine or lunchcounter coffee? That's the subject of this issue's cover story ("Savvy or snob?" on page 12). And the answer, as often, is "It depends." Obviously, driving away a customer is not acceptable under any circumstances. Says David "Skip" Colombo, senior accounts manager for Stumptown Coffee Roasters, an outfit that puts the "s" in "sophistication": "I definitely heard [in previous years], 'Oh, your coffee is amazing and everything's great, but I don't need some 20-year-old hipster looking down on me and telling me that my coffee order is stupid.'" So you could teach your staff that the customer is always right. That's certainly a respectable principle that guides many businesses. But if you simply train your baristas to bite their tongues when somebody dumps cream and sugar into a $6 single-source Costa Rican pour-over, you might not be helping your customers get the full value of what you have to offer. This is where it gets tricky. The ideal would be to educate your less sophisticated customers about how enjoyable high-end coffee really is. But to do that effectively, you and your staff have to present the information in a friendly way, and only if they sense that the individual will be receptive. "If somebody wants to put cream into a Costa Rican La Minita, there's a certain way to say, 'You know what, have you ever tried it without?'" says Greg Ubert, founder of retailer/ roaster Crimson Cup Coffee. "'Let me just do this Chemex for you, of this Costa Rica La Minita. Do me a favor, and if you don't like it this way, then obviously, put cream in it.'" It all comes down to sensitivity and friendliness. You determine the nature and atmosphere of your coffeehouse through many choices, both initial and ongoing. Some of the most important choices involve the personality and attitudes of your staff. If you have a high-end coffee menu, and you don't already have a dependable coterie of sophisticated customers, you'll eventually have to reach out to the less sophisticated. Staffers who can do that with just the right degree of subtlety and tact will go a long way toward increasing your odds of success. 4 Editor Pan Demetrakakes pan@m2media360.com PRODUCTION STAFF Art Director Kathleen Sage Production Manager Mary Jo Tomei CIRCULATION STAFF Vice President of Circulation & Collateral Services Joanne Juda-Prainito SALES STAFF Sales Manager Brian Grau bgrau@m2media360.com List Rental & Reprint Services Cheryl Naughton EXECUTIVE STAFF Group Publisher Charlie Forman cforman@m2media360.com CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Ed Avis, Jack Groot, Maura Keller, Caroline Rath, Brenda Russell EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Jason Burton, lab Desiree Farden, Cappuccine Jack Groot, JP's Coffee And Espresso Bar Wes Herman, The Woods Coffee Meghan Hubbs, Equal Exchange Rob Jeffries, North Atlantic Specialty Bag Craig Min, LAMIL Coffee Lon LaFlamme, Dillanos Coffee Roasters Kate LaPoint, Sound Provisions, Inc. Joe Monaghan, La Marzocco Tom Palm, Design & Layout Services Steve Schnitzler, Port City Java® Andi C. Trindle, Atlantic Specialty Coffee Bill Waddington, TeaSource SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION AND REQUESTS Subscriptions: $39 for one year, $61 for two years, U.S.; $48 for one year, $72 for two years, Canada; $110 for one year, all other countries (includes airmail postage). Single copies $10 each; Press releases on supplies, services and new products are welcomed and encouraged. Direct them to Specialty Coffee Retailer. Color print photography is preferred, slides and transparencies are accepted. Specialty Coffee Retailer reserves the right to edit all submissions. PRESS RELEASES: Specialty Coffee Retailer (ISSN 1077-3460) is published monthly by Specialty Information Media, 1030 W. Higgins Road, Suite 230, Park Ridge, IL 60068. Copyright© 2012 by Bev-Al Communications Inc. Postmaster please send address corrections to: Specialty Coffee Retailer, P.O. Box 4290, Port Jervis, NY 12771. 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