255: Operationalizing Kindness and Absolute Excellence while Building Birch Coffee with Paul Schlader

Free Time with Jenny Blake

“It wasn’t about being better than others, it was being ourselves, and true to our ideals in our work.” That’s just one of many gems from today’s guest, Birch Coffee co-founder Paul Schlader, who says, “I don’t accept anything less than absolute excellence.”

In this conversation we talk about how he stands out in the New York City noise by hiring for kindness; getting bought out when the Gershwin Hotel closed and thereby ending the lease on their first location, then parlaying those funds into two new stores (and the growing pains that followed); and the moment he had to tell his entire team they were furloughed indefinitely when New York City delivered the shut-down order; losing four stores but bouncing back to 14 (when so many other coffee shops closed down).

More About Paul: Paul Schlader co-founded Birch Coffee, a New York City-based coffee company, in 2009. Since then, the company has grown to fourteen locations and is doing 10x the revenue by the end of year three. Paul and his business partner Jeremy have been focused on bettering the industry through their work in coffee and service over the past fifteen years.

Paul's work directly focuses on quality of product. As a licensed Q grader, he manages all of Birch's green coffee purchases, and oversees their roasting, wholesale program, and espresso training. Though the coffee side is important, leadership is where Paul spends most of his time, building teams and working to teach their leaders to follow the mission, "Serve our customers every need, every time, knowing every moment counts.”

🌟 3 Key Takeaways

• A sample interview question to screen for kindness: What do you like most about working in the coffee industry, and what has drawn you to this industry? Individual has to talk about something positive. Through their tone, what they are sharing, we make an assessment about whether they are being truthful, honest, and open—or whether they are blowing smoke.
• From one store to two was far more challenging than two stores to four: Building trust, and making sure all systems are written out and tracked, everything memorialized. “One of our core values is ownership, up and down the chain of command. We all do the dishes, we all do what is called upon us at any time in the business.”
• Learn along the way: “Not knowing is the best part of the adventure of entrepreneurship, and the greatest teacher. There’s no button you can press to accelerate your ability to be better. You can’t do it until you go through it.

📝 Permission

Drop being hard on yourself—give yourself grace as you learn and grow, and make mistakes.

✅ Do (or Delegate) This Next

Operationalize one of your business values by crafting an interview question or manager manual entry that describes how you show up as {quality}.

🔗 Resources Mentioned

• Paul on the web, IG, LinkedIn
• HQ: Birch Coffee
• Blend: Emma’s Espresso
• Articles: Eater—4,000+ Restaurant Closings in New York City since the pandemic, Forbes—Nvidia Founder Admits: ‘Wouldn’t Start Company If I Had To Do It Over Again’
• Video: Acquired—Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang

📚 Books Mentioned

• Thanks a Thousand: A Gratitude Journey by A.J. Jacobs
• Free Time: Lose the Busywork, Love Your Business
• Pivot: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next One
• Life After College

🎧 Related Episodes

• Free Time: 177: “Don’t scale too soon” — On Books and Mission-Based Business-Building with Readwise Cofounder Daniel Doyon
• Pivot: 353: Pain, Purpose, and Portals—Pivoting from Massage Therapist to Coach with John O'Connor
• Acquired: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang

📝 Check out full show notes and share with friends: https://itsfreetime.com/episodes/255

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