Robert peck commonwealth joe

For the exclusive use of j. huang, 2019. 9 -7 1 9 -4 5 1 DECEMBER 7, 2018 ALEXANDER MACKAY RAMON CASADESUS-MASANELL Commonwealth Joe Coffee Roasters December 2016—It had been a busy year for Robert Peck, Chase Damiano, and Jeremy Martin, the leadership team of Commonwealth Joe Coffee Roasters. The company had begun an ambitious retail expansion strategy in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, hiring top designers and architects to create a unique specialty coffee experience that would be scalable. That October, they had opened their first custom-designed store in a brand-new luxury apartment building. The new store was an immediate success, even though a Starbucks had recently opened across the street. Preparing to open a custom-built location brought all kinds of challenges, but the successful opening afforded the leadership team some time to reflect. The next phase of the plan called for an additional three locations in the region. Retail expansion had been a successful strategy for specialty coffee companies elsewhere in the country. However, potential competitors were planning to expand their presence in D.C., so Commonwealth Joe might have to move aggressively. At the same time, a review of the company’s performance showed that the office channel yielded higher margins than the retail locations. In this business-to-business channel, Commonwealth Joe sold kegs filled with cold brew coffee to offices, which the offices provided as a perk to their employees. The office business had grown unexpectedly that summer, with many new accounts being added even as the team promoted the new retail store. Now, as Peck, Damiano, and Martin prepared for the next capital raise—targeted for February 2017—they began to re-evaluate the retail expansion strategy. To stay ahead of the competition, they wanted to make a strong move. They thought that focusing on one business would be a key element to successful growth, as it would allow them to optimize their limited leadership bandwidth and better motivate investors. Should Commonwealth Joe stay with retail, or should they shift their strategy to focus on the office business? A Brief History of Coffee Legend has it that coffee was discovered by an Abyssinian goatherd, who came upon his goats cavorting next to a tree with peculiar red berries. The Abyssinians used the leaves and the cherries of this coffee plant to make stimulating snacks and drinks. This practice had spread to Persia sometime before 900 CE. Coffee as we know it today, where the dried pits of the coffee cherry (the “beans”) are roasted, ground, and infused in water, was likely invented in the fifteenth century, and the same basic Professors Alexander MacKay and Ramon Casadesus-Masanell prepared this case. It was reviewed and approved before publication by a company designate. Funding for the development of this case was provided by Harvard Business School and not by the company. HBS cases are developed solely as the basis for class discussion. Cases are not intended to serve as endorsements, sources of primary data, or illustrations of effective or ineffective management. Copyright © 2018 President and Fellows of Harvard College. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1-800-545-7685, write Harvard Business School Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to www.hbsp.harvard.edu. This publication may not be digitized, photocopied, or otherwise reproduced, posted, or transmitted, without the permission of Harvard Business School. This document is authorized for use only by jianxiong huang in BA3103-Fall2019 taught by SUNIL CONTRACTOR, Temple University from Aug 2019 to Feb 2020. For the exclusive use of j.