It is our absolute pleasure to write a testimonial about our experience working with Chris Deferio and Keys to the Shop. We had a bold idea: to open a large coffee café combined with a wellness studio — a true third space where people could enjoy exceptional coffee and prioritize self-care in one welcoming environment. The only problem? We had …
We hired Chris at KTTS consulting to advise us on up-leveling our culture and quality. We knew there were issues, but felt an outside expert would more clearly see root causes. Chris spent a week on site and at each of our locations. He observed and spoke with nearly everyone he encountered to get their assessment of how things were …
Keys to the Shop Consulting has been an incredible help to me both while I was starting up my business, and again a year into being open. Chris has an abundance of knowledge and he is willing to push you to grow, even if it is uncomfortable. After just a couple months we saw a decrease in labor and COGS …
We knew it was time to find someone with the wisdom of experience and an outside perspective to help us navigate through our challenges. It was incredibly helpful to have someone to talk to that understands all of the nuances of running a coffee shop. – Chris is the perfect blend of tough love and encouragement. He gave me timelines …
I was crazy enough to buy an existing coffee shop with no business experience and limited coffee knowledge. To get a clear picture of my new business and learn how to run it, I hired Keys to the Shop for an assessment and consulting. The initial assessment was incredibly thorough, covering every aspect of my coffee shop. Chris not only …
We decided to hire Keys To The Shop Consulting, and it turned out to be one of the best decisions we made! Working with Chris has been an incredible experience. The systems we created with Chris for our shop have been a game-changer. They provided much-needed structure for our business and helped to create a solid foundation for us to …
I have known Chris for almost two decades. What I like about him since his humble beginnings, is the pragmatic approach he’s always had as barista at first, then as consultant and finally as mentor to others. Key to the shop is a reflection of that: he tries to inspire people sharing best practice and ultimately by identifying tools that …
I highly recommend Chris Deferio and his podcast series “Keys to the Shop”. It covers a wide range of relevant topics for coffee professionals, the content of which is instructive, informative, encouraging, inspirational, and entertaining all at once. Not only has the podcast become a go-to resource for me, but I’ve seen my own team and our cafes benefit from …
KTTS was instrumental in assisting Reserva Coffee Roasters to become a specialty café located in McAllen, Texas. Chris Deferio’s vast experience and knowledge enabled us to create café standard operating procedures, improve espresso and batch brew extractions, as well as improve team and leadership culture in order to provide the best customer service possible for our guests. Chris is a …
If you have ever considered investing or growing your leadership staff (or cafe as a whole for that matter), I’m here to say it can be so worth it. One huge obstacle is to know where to turn and if it will it pay off? We have known Chris Defirio for almost 4 years, since the beginning of the creation of …
