The Profitable Coffee Business

Hosted by Michael Ryan

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Sep 2026

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About the show

Welcome to The Profitable Coffee Business Podcast! We help coffee shop & roastery owners build a profitable coffee business that takes great care of everyone-including them.

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30 recent

September 22, 202653 min

Ep 28: If You Have to Screw Someone to Win, You Still Lose

📝Check out Jamie's Consulting & Training Company: https://www.yourcoffeeshopsuccess.com/ ————————————Follow Jamie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourcoffeeshopsuccess/————————————The best business relationships aren’t built by squeezing every last dollar out of the other person.They’re built by creating deals where everyone walks away better off.In this episode, I sit down with Jamie Cunningham to talk about the mindset behind building businesses, partnerships, and opportunities that actually work for everyone involved.We get into what it looks like to negotiate without being adversarial, why sometimes the best deal is no deal at all, and how thinking beyond your own short-term interests can create better long-term outcomes for your company, your team, your partners, and your customers.We also talk about the difference between being generous and being naive, how to recognize when a deal simply doesn’t work, and why the strongest business relationships are built on mutual benefit—not one side “winning.”If you’re a coffee business owner trying to build a company that is both profitable and good for the people around you, this conversation will give you a lot to think about.

September 21, 20261 hr 1 min

Ep 27: Owners' Compensation & Tax Strategy

📝Register for the Owner's Comp & Tax Strategy Workshop! https://threadbarecoffeeconsulting.com/owners-comp-tax-strategy-workshop/ ————————————📝Free Mini-Course: The Profitable Coffee Business https://www.skool.com/profitablecoffeebusiness/about ———————————— 🎯 Need support implementing all these strategies you're learning? Book a free demo of our app: https://www.taskrapp.io/ Most coffee shop and roastery owners have never intentionally designed how their business should pay them.They take whatever is left over. They make random distributions. They put themselves on payroll because their accountant told them to. But they often have no idea:• How much salary they should actually take• How much they can safely take in distributions• What revenue the business needs to generate to fund their desired income• When an S-Corp actually makes sense• Which tax strategies could legally put more money back in their pocketIn this episode, I’m joined by Daniel Ryan of Ryan Financial Solutions to talk about two things every coffee business owner should understand:OWNER COMPENSATION + TAX STRATEGY.We dig into:• Schedule C vs. S-Corp taxation• What the IRS means by a “reasonable salary”• Salary vs. S-Corp distributions• How to reverse-engineer revenue from your desired owner income• When raising prices may be smarter than adding employees or locations• Putting your spouse on payroll• Putting your children on payroll• Management companies• Roth 401(k) strategies• Home office reimbursements• And where business owners get these strategies WRONGThe goal isn't simply to make more revenue.The goal is to build a business that can afford to pay you what you want to make — and then structure that compensation intelligently.On Friday Sept 25th we're hosting the Coffee Business Compensation & Tax Strategy Workshop, where we'll help coffee shop and roastery owners build an actual compensation plan for themselves and their team.By the end, the goal is to be able to say:“I know exactly how much my business needs to make for me to earn $____, and I have a compensation plan for myself and my team that the business can actually afford.”👉 Learn more / register for the workshop: https://threadbarecoffeeconsulting.co... Ryan Financial Solutions: https://www.ryanfinancialsolutions.com/ Subscribe for more practical strategies to build a healthier, more profitable coffee business.

September 21, 202659 min

Ep 26: Why Owners Are Addicted to Busy

In this episode, Chris Deferio of ‪@keystotheshop‬ joins me to challenge some of the most common assumptions coffee shop owners make about their businesses.We talk about why owners wear “busy” like a badge of honor, why so many coffee businesses chronically underprice their products, and how to increase average ticket without turning hospitality into aggressive upselling.We cover: Why “busy” can actually be a warning sign How owners become the bottleneck in their own businesses Why coffee shop owners are afraid to raise prices The psychology behind underpricing Increasing average ticket through better hospitality What coffee shop owners should actually be spending their time on If you’re working harder than ever but your coffee business still isn’t producing the profit—or the life—you want, this conversation is for you.Subscribe for practical strategies to build a more profitable, sustainable coffee business.📝Free Mini-Course: The Profitable Coffee Business https://www.skool.com/profitablecoffeebusiness/about ————————————🎯 Need support implementing all these strategies you're learning? Book a free demo of our app: https://www.taskrapp.io/

August 25, 202639 min

Ep. 25: Sales Are Low-Now What?

August 24, 202648 min

EP 24: Your Business Needs You to Have a Life (Outside Your Business)

📝Free Mini-Course: The Profitable Coffee Business ⁠ ———————————— Want help becoming predictably profitable? ⁠ 👉 Book a free strategy call ⁠ ———————————— 🎯 Need support implementing all these strategies you're learning? ⁠ Book a free demo of our app ⁠ ———————————— What if becoming a better coffee business owner actually requires you to spend less time thinking about your business?In this episode, I sit down with a coffee shop and roastery owner who has embraced what he calls “side quests”—pursuing interests, hobbies, and experiences completely outside of his business.And the surprising part? Those side quests have made him a better business owner.We talk about how pursuing interests outside of work can improve your creativity, leadership, problem-solving, relationships, and even your ability to step away from the business.Because your business doesn't just need more of your time.It needs a better version of you.In this episode, we explore:☕ What a “side quest” actually is🧠 Why stepping away from your business can make you better at running it🚀 How outside interests can develop skills that directly translate into business🔥 The connection between burnout, identity, and entrepreneurship⏰ How busy business owners can actually make time for side quests🎯 How to choose a side quest that energizes you instead of becoming another obligation💡 What coffee shop owners can learn by intentionally doing things that have nothing to do with coffeeIf you've ever felt like your business has become your entire identity—or you've convinced yourself that you simply don't have time for anything else—this episode is for you.Your next business breakthrough might be hiding in your next side quest.

August 10, 202632 min

Ep 23: Your Barista Training Is Backwards

📝Free Mini-Course: The Profitable Coffee Business ———————————— Want help becoming predictably profitable? 👉 Book a free strategy call ———————————— 🎯 Need support implementing all these strategies you're learning? Book a free demo of our app ———————————— Most coffee shops train their baristas backwards. They spend hours teaching espresso recipes, dialing in grinders, latte art, and coffee knowledge… while hospitality, cleanliness, and bar flow get treated like afterthoughts.I think that’s backwards. The job of a barista is roughly: ☕ 85% Hospitality 🧼 10% Cleanliness ⚙️ 4% Bar Flow 🎯 1% Dialing In That doesn't mean dialing in doesn't matter. It means it shouldn't be the center of your training program. In this episode, I break down how I would actually train a new barista over their first 90 days—and why your training program should be built around **outcomes**, not just skills. By 90 days, a new employee should be able to: → Make everyone feel seen → Keep everything clean → Handle $200/hour in sales solo And those outcomes shouldn't stop when training ends. They should become the standards you use to coach, manage, and review your staff. Because the goal isn't to build employees who know how to make coffee. **The goal is to build employees you can trust to run the business well.** It's people over coffee. Always. If you're a coffee shop or roastery owner trying to build a more profitable, scalable, and less owner-dependent business, this episode is for you.

July 28, 202635 min

Ep 22: How to Become the Owner Your Team Can Count On

Sign up to beta test our new app: https://www.taskrapp.io/ Taskr App is your task list-handled. It simplifies and automates all of the trickiest parts of running the business side of your coffee business. Leaving you free to focus on what you actually started this business for: caring for people. Beta testers get a lifetime 50% discount on Taskr App once it goes live! --- Owning a coffee business isn't about working harder—it's about becoming more predictable. When your team knows where you'll be, what you'll be focused on, and when they can rely on you, everything changes. Communication improves. Trust grows. Managers become more confident. Your business becomes less chaotic and far more scalable. In this episode, we break down why creating a consistent weekly schedule isn't about restricting your freedom—it's about earning your team's trust and creating the kind of leadership that great businesses are built on. If your calendar changes every day, your team is constantly reacting. But when your schedule is predictable, your business becomes predictable too. In this episode you'll learn: Why consistency creates trust faster than charisma How a predictable schedule reduces interruptions and fires The hidden cost of constantly changing priorities A simple framework for building a weekly rhythm your team can depend on The one action item you can implement this week If you're a coffee shop or roastery owner who wants a business that runs more smoothly—and eventually runs without you—this episode is for you. 👍 If you found this helpful, like, subscribe, and share it with another coffee business owner who's ready to build a more profitable, scalable business.

July 6, 202645 min

Ep 21: How to Compensate Staff (So The Good Ones Don't Leave)

Everyone says, "Just pay people more." It's one of the most common pieces of advice in business. It's also one of the most misunderstood. If your team lacks ownership, accountability, or consistency, higher wages alone won't solve the problem. In this final episode of our 5-part Talent Management Series, we're unpacking what actually drives employee retention, performance, and long-term loyalty—and how to build a compensation system that strengthens your business instead of slowly destroying your margins. We'll cover: Why compensation starts with profitability When raises actually make sense (and when they don't) Why bonuses often fail How to reward performance without creating entitlement Building career paths that keep your best people engaged The compensation philosophy we recommend for coffee shops and roasteries If you're tired of watching payroll increase while performance stays the same, this episode is for you. ✔️ Part 1 – Recruiting Staff ✔️ Part 2 – Interviewing Staff ✔️ Part 3 – Onboarding Staff ✔️ Part 4 – Developing Staff ✔️ Part 5 – Compensating Staff At Threadbare Coffee Consulting, our mission is simple: help coffee shop and roastery owners build businesses that are predictably profitable, operationally excellent, and capable of growing without the owner carrying everything. Subscribe for weekly episodes on profitability, leadership, systems, operations, and scaling your coffee business. Social & Website for Threadbare Coffee Consulting Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠@threadbarecoffeeconsulting⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://www.threadbarecoffeeconsulting.com

July 3, 202637 min

Ep 20: Why Your Staff Feels Stuck

Great employees don't quit because they're tired. They quit because they stop growing. One of the biggest mistakes coffee shop and roastery owners make is assuming that training and development are the same thing. Training teaches someone how to do today's job. Development prepares them for tomorrow's opportunities. In Part 4 of our 5-Part Talent Management Series, we're talking about how to build a culture where your team continues to grow, takes ownership, and becomes capable of leading your business without you. In this episode, you'll learn: Why talented employees eventually feel stuck The difference between training and development How to create clear growth paths for your team Simple coaching habits that build future leaders Why developing people is one of the highest ROI investments you can make If you're tired of constantly hiring and replacing good employees, this episode will help you build a team that wants to stay and grow with your company. Social & Website for Threadbare Coffee Consulting Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠@threadbarecoffeeconsulting⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.threadbarecoffeeconsulting.com

June 22, 202640 min

Ep 19: Stop Training. Start Onboarding (Part 2)

Today we continue the conversation with Maxwell Mooney. Most coffee companies think onboarding is training. It's not. Training teaches employees how to make drinks, run the register, and complete tasks. Onboarding helps employees become committed to your business, connected to your mission, and excited about their future.