Best-selling author, Dr. Leonard Sweet, believes that atmosphere has a lot to do with profitability. In his book, The<\/em> Gospel According to Starbucks, <\/em>Sweet writes, \u201cStarbucks built an assumption-shattering business by selling an irresistible experience along with every cup of coffee.\u201d \u201cIn 2017, there were\u00a013,930 Starbucks\u00a0stores in the U.S.,\u201d reports www.statista.com<\/a>. \u201cThe total number of Starbucks stores worldwide has almost doubled in the decade between 2007 and 2017.\u201d<\/p>\n According to www.amazon.com<\/a>, “Leonard Sweet shows you how the passion that Starbucks\u00ae<\/i>\u00a0has for creating an irresistible experience can connect you with God\u2019s stirring introduction to the experience of faith in\u00a0The Gospel According to Starbucks<\/i>.” As for the coffee shop itself, Sweet attributes the d\u00e9cor, \u201cappealing music,\u201d and a \u201cmelody of complex coffee smells\u201d as contributing to the Starbucks \u201csensory feast.\u201d If we think deeply, that\u2019s part of the pleasure that we find in most coffee shops whether an independent or chain. We aren\u2019t merely buying a $2.00 cup of java or a more expensive specialty drink, but there\u2019s something else we\u2019re also purchasing. Dr. Sweet explains, \u201c\u2026coffee is a hospitality drink, a sign of welcome and openness to sharing.\u201d It can be invigorating to sit in a coffee shop with a friend and connect in meaningful conversation. Of course, often we\u2019re in a real rush and want our coffee in a hurry. On other occasions, we visit a coffeehouse, because we not only want something to drink, but the sensation that we are of some significance in this normally impersonal world. A great barista can make a customer feel noticed and appreciated, even though technically their job is simply to politely prepare a tasty beverage.<\/p>\n And that\u2019s how I met Kaitlin. Some years back, I decided to grab a coffee after my husband and I transplanted to a new area. I had been grocery shopping, and was feeling a little lonely and displaced in the way moving has of doing. I was pleasantly taken off-guard by the brunette barista\u2019s thoughtfulness when I initially visited the grocery\u2019s Starbucks kiosk.<\/p>\n While still efficiently getting her work done, the young employee acted like she had all the time in the world for me. That I was the most important customer of her day, even though I was an older lady who had trouble deciding what I wanted. This trait can be annoying to most milennials, but Kaitlin didn\u2019t seem to mind. Maybe because I never had a daughter, I felt privileged that she smiled and seemed genuinely happy to see me whenever I showed up at her counter.<\/p>\n Somehow, the dedicated barista made me feel connected to my then new community. Kaitlin and I would chat a few minutes, while she prepared my drink, if she wasn\u2019t busy. I never knew her last name, or much about her personal life except about her schooling, but I was thankful for our friendly connection during my time of transition. It was a gift, and I\u2019m sure she made countless other customers feel that they were special, too. Then I moved again, and lost track of her.<\/p>\n So, Kaitlin Osborne, this long overdue column is for you. It\u2019s also for every barista who tries each day to do more than their job by genuinely caring about their customers, just like you did. Forever young barista, your life truly made a difference, and your kindness will always be remembered. Thanks for taking time to brighten the world, if only for a short while!<\/p>\n Christina Ryan Claypool is an Amy award-winning freelance journalist and an inspirational speaker. Contact her<\/em> through her website at <\/em>www.christinaryanclaypool.com<\/em><\/a>. Her first novel, Secrets of the Pastor’s Wife, will be released this spring.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A couple of decades ago, if anyone would have said that people would routinely cough up three or four dollars for a specialty cup of coffee, most folks wouldn\u2019t have believed it. Yet today, it\u2019s commonplace for countless individuals to … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/christinaryanclaypool.com\/blog1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Fireplace-photo-150x200.jpg\")
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But two years ago in December, I saw Kaitlin\u2019s winning smile again. Tragically, this time it was in an obituary photo.\u00a0I learned her last name, and that this vibrant young lady with so much potential, didn\u2019t have all the time in the world. At only 24, she had lost a battle to cancer. I was deeply saddened by the monumental loss of such a gentle soul for all her loved ones. For me, there had been no chance to say, \u201cGood-bye,\u201d or to express my appreciation.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/christinaryanclaypool.com\/blog1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Christina-Ryan-Claypool-150x200.jpg\")
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