The Derby Affair
So I agreed to be a vendor at Hingham’s Derby Academy Fall Fair event last Saturday. A couple of days before, I roasted coffee, portioned it into little bags, bagged whole beans to sell, cleaned the espresso machine, bought supplies, recruited 3 “rock star” people to help, loaded the truck with all the stuff, arrived there at 7:30 am, stayed until 4:00 pm and came home with 88 bucks in my pocket. I’m a much better coffee roaster than I am a business man, but one thing came through loud and clear that afternoon…”this was not good”.
But wait… given some time to reflect over a glass of Pyrat Reserve Rum. (which I bought with the 88 bucks) I’ve declared “this wasn’t such a bad thing”. Heck, this is a business and rarely do things run as smoothly as you want them to. “You’ve got to take the good with the bad”. “Brush yourself off and get back on the horse”.
Here’s a list I’ve compiled that puts my public notions and cynicisms to a grinding hault.
1. Lets face it, my barista experience is limited. I haven’t spent much time behind an espresso machine pulling shots and making multiple cuppuccino’s for 2% froth craving customers. I was really cranking those things out today. Every shot I pulled and all the froth I foamed got better as the day wore on.
2. At least a dozen or so people who have not yet tried Redeye Roasters coffee became enlightened.
3. My new/used Rancillio espresso machine was put to the test and “it rocks”
4. The whole experience was good practice for a future retail situation.
5. Team Work
6. Customers openly complimentary on how much they enjoy my coffee.
7. Cute kids
8. Smiles
9. Friends that want to see me succeed.
10. When you’ve got the best wife/soulmate in the universe, things are never that bad.
Mike said,
October 2, 2007 @ 10:29 am
Bob, I had a blast working the coffee stand with you this past weekend. You were definately ripping out the cuppuccino’s too. Nice work! And your new Fall Fusion blend rocks.
I agree w/ all of your 10 points above. Look at this as a marketing event where you are getting your name out there. Not only are you exposing your coffee to new people, but you are exposing your personality. You are putting a face to the coffee… and that means a lot to some people. And you never know… one of those people could be quite influential and in the market for a gourmet roaster.