Luis, Gloria and me

We got Luis to open the coffee shop and it was inspiring to listen to him talk about the difference fairtrade makes to the co-operative and his family.

You can find out more at http://www.toledochocolate.com/

Gloria (the real brains behind the business) is also in this picture.

Wage Slip Used

I use the following straight forward wage slip with Quickpay. It saves having to buy expensive stationery.

http://www.esquiresennis.com/documents/Wageslip.xls

Timesheet used

I use the following straight forward timesheet to track what hours the staff have worked in a week.

http://www.esquiresennis.com/documents/WeeklyTimeSheet.xls

Feel free to copy if you are looking for one.

Well done Kieran

Kieran Murphy won best business blog for his ice cream Ireland.

He writes so passionately about ice cream it is always worth reading.

He also mentions coffee every now and again and these are available at http://icecreamireland.com/category/coffee/

Penguins

Esquires has a penguin as part of its logo and for the life of me I cannot get the connection with coffee. We have a penguin stamp for our loyalty cards and this can come in handy on any quiet times. Here is Kate's environmental message for the world.

Elma's Cakes

I have this marvellous supplier of cakes called Elma. She is so enthusiastic about her cakes.

Above is a selection of Chocolate cake, Pear and Almond tart, Coconut and rasberry cheesecake, Carrot cake, Apple Pie and Chocolate Biscuit cake.

You have to taste these to truly appreciate how divine they are.

The real Mr Americano with an extra shot.

Of course Kevin is never going to be the real Mr Americano as he does not come from the United States; unlike Elliot who does.

Mr Americano with the extra shot.

I kind of snuck up on Kevin and asked was it ok to take a quick picture with my mobile and before he could say no I took the picture.

This is so Elliot (with one t) will recognise him as a fellow Tall Americano with an extra shot drinker.

Now I'd better get a picture of Eliot so that Kevin will recognise him....

Not technically our first customer but.....

The first lady who came in did not want her picture in the paper so this is really our second customer (the first got a free coffee instead of the flowers and champagne).

Luis Armando Choco opened our shop today. He is a fairtrade farmer from Belize and it was a pleasure to meet him and see his passion for fairtrade and hear how it helps his family and the other people working in the Co-op.

Tomorrow we are donating all the takings from any hot drinks sold to the Co-op.