JP Lachance, CEO of Equator Coffees

Daniel Blaser (00:05):

Hello and welcome to On the Clock, presented by Workstream. If you care about hiring and retaining hourly employees, you're in the right place. I'm Daniel Blazer, and today I'm clocking in with JP Lehan, CEO of Equator. Coffees. Equator has nine cafe locations in and around Marin County, California. In addition to a bustling direct to consumer business, we chat about equator, groundbreaking history and how their commitment to a positive culture helps with their hiring and retention efforts. JP also discusses sustainability in hiring and the sourcing of ingredients and more. Enjoy to get things, you know, started. I'd love to hear about Equator, coffees, and kind of what makes it different from other coffee companies.

JP Lachance (00:50):

So Equator was founded by our co-founders Helen Russell and Brooke McDonald in a garage in Quarter Madera in 1995, which is just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. We've grown up over the last 28 years. We started in wholesale and now we have three channels, wholesale, sort of retail coffee shops, and also a direct to consumer online business. We currently have nine retail cafes open, over 400 wholesale partners, and we work with a lot of, you know, very cool and interesting chefs, including Thomas Keller at the French Laundry. Dominic Kren, who's the first female, three Michelin star chef in the us. Tyler Florence, Brandon Jew Susan Vinegar and Mary Sue Milliken down in Los Angeles. So really great partners that we get, get to work with day in, day out. And I think what makes us a little bit different is, you know, we're not just selling coffee.

(01:43):

We're really trying to use coffee as a vehicle to help improve the lives of everyone along our supply chain, from our farmers to our baristas. It's what we call our chain of wellbeing. And so, you know, we believe in using coffee as a force for good. And we believe if you drink good coffee, it will lead to good things, right? 'cause You'll be supporting these farmers, you'll be supporting these baristas that will be able to have a bigger impact on more people. And so we sort of like to group our values around that. So we think, you know, we believe in good coffee, we believe in kind people, and we believe in a better planet.

Daniel Blaser (02:15):

You know, let's kind of double click on the emphasis that equator places on being socially and environmentally sustainable. 'cause You kind of alluded to that a little bit, but I'd love to talk a little more like what does that, you know, kind of what does that look like, I guess, overall? And then what does that mean to you personally?

JP Lachance (02:33):

So the company really was founded on the basis of sustainability. And it's probably a longer story, but the short story is like our founder founders were operating coffee bars in Oakland. And at that time, the importers wouldn't tell them anything about the beans. Brooke, our co-founder, wanted to know, you know, who was the farmer growing the coffee? Were they being paid fairly? You know, what were the conditions of the soil of, you know, shade trees? And at that time there was really no transparency in the coffee industry. So Helen and Brooke decided, okay, we're gonna sell these coffee bars, we're gonna buy a roaster, we're gonna roast our own coffee so we actually know and have a relationship with the farmer that we're buying coffee from. So that's really how the company got started. And over the years, you know, we always tried to make more and more strides around sustainability.

(03:17):

And then it was Maureen McCue, our executive vice president, who really came up with the idea of sort of formalizing our commitment to sustainability with a B Corp certification. So we, the company pursued that. And so in 2011, we became the first coffee roaster in California to become B Corp certified. And that really, you know, forces us to look at everything through a lens of what is, you know, is this decision gonna impact our employees, the environment, our community, and our bottom line. And so that's really our sort of guiding force. And it matters to me because I've been in, you know, different businesses over many years in my career. But I really wanna work for a company that's contributing to solutions rather than causing problems. And so the B Corp mission to use business as a force for good, that really resonates with me. It really makes me excited to work for Equator.

Daniel Blaser (04:07):

That's really cool. And I mean, sounds like, you know, as far as caring about supply chains and sourcing and everything like that, equator really seems like it was kind of on the cutting edge because all that stuff is, you know, that's maybe more in public consciousness now last few years. But I feel like, you know, starting in the nineties and working on some of that stuff, that's really cool.

JP Lachance (04:29):

Yeah, definitely revolutionary for the time. And we probably, you know, don't get a lot of credit for it just 'cause one, we started as a wholesaler, right? So we didn't have our own brand. And so, you know, people more know coffee when they have coffee, brand has coffee shops and you experience it. So it took us a while until we actually started opening our own coffee shops. And also just our founders tend to be more, you know, humble people. They're not sort of trumpeting things from the rooftops. But they really were sort of the, the OGs and the <laugh> direct trade.

Daniel Blaser (04:56):

You know, as you know, workstream is all about hiring entertaining hourly workers. And I'd love to get, kind of get your perspective on, on how you think equator dedication to social consciousness maybe influences your hiring and your retention efforts.

JP Lachance (05:11):

So as a female L-G-B-T-Q founded company, I mean, our intention is always to create inclusive and welcoming spaces for all. So it starts there. It's all about kindness and respect. And then as we, you know, have always pursued that socially conscious sustainable model and then, you know, pursued the B corp, ation B Corp certification, that really helps us attract applicants, particularly among millennials and Gen Z as that those generations care much more about the values of a brand or a company. And so, you know, being sustainable, being a B Corp, it really helps us find like-minded people that wanna support our mission and culture. And I think the other thing that you know, has worked well for us as we look at hiring retention is trying to build that culture centered on kindness and respect. It makes people wanna, you know, again, join the company, stay with the company, work hard for the company. And we also have a philosophy of we wanna teach our team everything we know, whether it's finance, marketing, hr, coffee, roasting, right? So, 'cause we want them to be successful at a equator and if they, you know, at some point they leave a plate for whatever reason, we want them to be successful in their future endeavors. And so it's just having that philosophy and the way of treating people that really helps us, you know, attract and retain people.

Daniel Blaser (06:27):

I really love that that idea of just trying to, to teach your team members all the different pieces of the business to, to help them become more valuable in, you know, the job market. Is that kind of a, do you have kind of like a formal program or something? Or is that just like a, something that everyone accepts and cares about and so that just is a priority because of that?

JP Lachance (06:48):

Yeah, I think it's more informal and we probably could do a better job of formalizing it. But it's just sort of an accepted culture that we built within the company. So you'll see a lot of people, you know, come into retail as like a barista and they'll enjoy that, but then they'll want to sort of go in a different direction in their coffee journey. And so then that leads some people to go into our roastery and becoming roasters and really going dig deep into like, what does it mean to buy and roast excellent coffee, specialty coffee? We'll also see some people go from, you know, retail or wholesale into more of a corporate function, you know, whether that's HR or something else or vice versa. And so just having that freedom that, you know, you're not locked into one position for your entire career. You know, if you show interest and, you know, initiative and hard work, you know, we're willing to teach you new things.

Daniel Blaser (07:35):

Yeah, I, I think, I didn't think about this before, but I guess coffee is a, it's a very unique industry because there are people that have a lot of passion for it, right? And so that is something where you can be the springboard to a lifelong career kind of in, in coffee because that's something that, you know, people spend their whole lives pursuing that. So that's really cool.

JP Lachance (07:57):

Yeah, I mean, it's a little bit probably similar, the wine industry, other things, there's just so many elements to it. But coffee even more so, 'cause you not only do you have the whole agricultural side of like, you know, growing it and what varietals and what are the right conditions to get the most outta the, you know, the coffee cherry. But then there's so many different ways to roast it. And then there's so many different brew methods, right? Pour or, you know, espresso, et cetera, right? So you can sort of go down a million rabbit holes in coffee. So it's, it's pretty cool.

Daniel Blaser (08:23):

Yeah, definitely. So we've talked a little bit about sustainability, like literal sustainability, kind of how most people think about it. But I, I wanted to ask if you think that sustainability can apply to hiring? And if so, like what does that look like?

JP Lachance (08:39):

Yeah, I mean, I think it's really sort of a sort of higher level sustainability. I mean, there's maybe, you know, some nuts and bolts like, okay, doing online forms and not printing out paper <laugh>, right? That's inable. But I think it's more about doing a better job upfront, making the right hiring decisions and doing a better job training and retaining employees. Because like any business, like every business wants to do that, whether they're sustainable or not, because it's sort of a bottom line impact. You reduce turnover and reduce recruiting costs. But we really think about everything in our business becoming, you know, more sustainable. Whether it's, you know, roasting on like Lauren Roasters, which use 80% gas less per roast, right? Or using compostable packaging in our cafes. But even hiring plays a role because if we hire less people, we reduce that turnover and we reduce those costs, right?

(09:27):

That makes the company more efficient. So we can then go buy more coffee, we can send more people to a training class, we can open another cafe and, and, and hire more people. So everything we can do to make the company more sustainable helps. And recruiting is, as you know, is just a huge part of that, right? Because companies spend so much time and so much money trying to find the right people and retain them. And if you lose them, then you gotta start the cycle again. So I think that really is something to be said for approaching, you know, hiring and retention with that sustainability mindset.

Daniel Blaser (09:56):

Yeah, like you said, it's all, I think sustainability is like a concept. You know, you, it applies different places, but it, a lot of it boils down to, like you just said, the a longer term perspective, right? Rather than immediate results and, you know, whatever is you're worried about today, it's, you know, looking at a longer time horizon. So that makes sense. Any company that has employed hourly workers over the last, you know, few years especially, there's been a lot of challenges that are kind of unprecedented when it comes to, to finding and retaining employees. Maybe can you talk to some of those challenges that, that you've seen that Equator has experienced? Just kind of talk about some of those challenges and maybe also what you've done to address them.

JP Lachance (10:42):

I mean, I think, you know, hiring for all of our different teams, especially our retail cafe teams, has always been an issue. Just 'cause the fact that we're, you know, headquartered in the San Francisco Bay area and the cost of living here is so high. So staffing's always been a huge challenge. But all those challenges just were immensely exacerbated by the pandemic, right? We just had a huge shortage of workers. You know, people didn't wanna work either 'cause their health was impacted. They were worried about, you know, the health of people they were living with or taking care of at home. You know, there was a lot of people just, you know, the great resignation, right? I'm not gonna work in retail anymore. And so it was really, really tough for us. I mean, like everyone so we went through a lot of challenges.

(11:24):

So, you know, we tried to, like everyone else, we tried to pivot and tackle different ways. I mean, first and foremost we really stepped up our recruiting efforts. And so one thing, you know, we always would hire a couple seasonal college students, high school students every summer. But, you know, it's always tough to do because you'd put a lot of training and then they'd not tend to stick around. But we really had no choice during the pandemic, so we had to really go in heavy on seasonal workers. And that was a short term solve, you know, but that created their own issues. 'cause Then they go back to school and like, so, you know, normally, okay, falls coming. I have to hire a few people to make up for my seasonal workers. Like we had to hire like wholesale and make up for those seasonal workers.

(12:00):

So that was really, you know, put a lot of stress on the organization. And the other thing we did was we just really had to step up our training efforts, you know, both around like what we call service, which is really technical skills. Like, you know, how do I make an espresso? What's the right temperature? How do I do latte art? And then also around like hospitality, right? How do I build a relationship with the customer? How do I give them a memorable experience? You know, and do it with kindness. So we had to do a lot more training 'cause we didn't have the luxury of hiring someone who had been a barista before, where we had sort of what we say, hire for kindness, teach them coffee.

Daniel Blaser (12:33):

As you, you're, you know, are kind of doing all of these things to, to address this, you know, this unprecedented hiring environment. Was there anything that like surprised you either because it worked and you didn't expect it to or because it didn't work and you thought it would,

JP Lachance (12:50):

I mean, I think one of the things that worked was actually working with Workstream. We had to actually start doing that before the pandemic, you know? Right. Just trying to meet our employees where they were. And younger employees, you know, are really, they're gonna apply on their phone through text. They're not gonna, you know, sit down at a desktop necessarily. So that proved to be a huge benefit to us. As we got into the pandemic and everything moved online, everything moved remote. So having work stream up and running, having our managers know how to, you know, look for, you know, reach out to candidates, see the candidates that were coming in apply, you know, get them onboarded, rooted that really helped us out quite a bit.

Daniel Blaser (13:22):

Given your, your role and your experience, much of which we've, you know, discussed, what would you say would, is like the most important piece of advice? If if someone wants to build a company that is like, especially attractive to the hourly workforce and, and make it really, you know, some company that they want to work at, what advice would you give them?

JP Lachance (13:45):

Yeah, I think it's really around building a strong culture, because that's, again, what's gonna attract people. So what's gonna allow you to develop people, retain people. And obviously there's a lot of different cultures that work for a lot of different companies, but what we've really found is that culture of respect, kindness, and transparency. There's really key. And it sort of seems to fit well with, you know, the, the sort of the workforce in the Bay Area, the workforce that's interested in the coffee industry. You know, employees wanna feel good about the company they're supporting, that they're working hard for every day. They wanna be in an environment that they enjoy. They wanna work with people that, you know, they enjoy and have similar values. And so, you know, really, again, looking for that respect, kindness, transparency, that's really allowing us to really grow the company over the years.

Daniel Blaser (14:30):

What would predictions would you have for the future of the hourly workforce and, and hiring? Like do you think hiring is going to get a little bit easier or, you know, what do you, what would you kind of guess?

JP Lachance (14:42):

Yeah, I think we'll continue to see it sort of, you know, ebb and flow. It has gotten a little easier, you know, last year with the economy cooling off and sort of all the media talk recession, I think that, you know, sort of helped a little bit. And then obviously in the last few months, unfortunately with all the layoffs in the Bay Area, you know, that's also made people reconsider, okay, maybe the grass is not always greener <laugh>, right? Maybe I've got a good opportunity where I'm at. But we believe it's gonna continue to be our number one challenge. It's just given the cost of living staffing is gonna continue to be our, our biggest priority. What

Daniel Blaser (15:14):

Do you think about this? There's kind of been like a pay escalation, I guess. Do you think that that will kind of continue?

JP Lachance (15:20):

I think so. I think just given the cost of living in the Bay area and the impact we've all felt with inflation over the last 12 months, right? You know, from eggs to gas, to, you know, you name the product, it's gone up. And so people need to, you know, earn more and pay for all those products and like, you know, rent and everything else. So I don't, I don't see it slowing down. And obviously, you know, California has sort of been a leader, which was minimum wage and raising that minimum wage every year, and we always pay above minimum wage, wage. But it's gonna be a, it's gonna continue, I believe, for quite a while.

Daniel Blaser (15:53):

Now we've kind of gotten your perspective on like what, you know, a company can do to be attractive to hourly workers. But given your, you know, your current position, like what would you recommend that leaders do? Like what, what could a leader that's listening to this, what could they start doing today that would help them be better prepared for, you know, the, the future of whether it's managing hourly workers or, or growing a business where that's your, you know, your, your primary team, our hourly workers. Like, what advice would you give leaders?

JP Lachance (16:24):

Right. I mean, I think it's, it's probably a lot of the sort of typical advice you hear, but it's, you know, it's important. It's right. It's like being humble, like realizing you don't know everything, right? So you have to, you know, surround yourself with people who are, you know, experts in their field or willing to become experts in their field. You have to talk to those people, listen to them, you know, get their input and really try and collaborate to make the best decisions possible for the company. And then I think it just goes to some of the things we've talked about, which is just, you know, making sure your organization is set for success, right? Like, investing in more training to develop and retain team members, making sure you have easy ways, you know, the right technology to recruit people, onboard people, right? Less friction in the process. And then you really have to, you know, as you're talking about like the wages are just gonna keep going up, so you have to figure out how to make your business sustainable, right? So it's where else can we take costs out of the business without sacrificing quality, right? And again, a lot of that's around sustainability measures, like, you know, getting things to recycle, reuse, right? And then can you put those savings back into wages because you're gonna need that in order to recruit, retain people.

Daniel Blaser (17:43):

Thank you for listening to On The Clock. For more info, visit workstream.us/podcast. I've also a link in the show notes to connect with JP on LinkedIn and order some of equator awesome coffee Now, next time we're clocking out.