Barista: at the heart of business

Established in 2004 in Montreal by two entrepreneurs, Barista Microtorréfacteur creates blends of slow roasted coffees, offers educational tools to amateurs and professionals and is actively involved in its community.

Learn more about the company by reading the following interview, where one of the co-founders tells us about his journey as an entrepreneur and the road traveled since the beginning. You will fall in love with their mission, and their delicious coffees if you haven't already.

How would you describe your business in one sentence?

I wouldn't describe it in one sentence, but in one word. Innovative. Since the beginning of the brand's existence, we have always tried to find ways to innovate both in terms of product development and in terms of technology and the distribution channels through which we transmit information to our customers and people who follow us on social networks.

Who are you? Why did you choose this field?

My name is Alex Sereno, I come from a family of entrepreneurs, so I think that this path was traced quite naturally in my life, I am an entrepreneur at heart.

As for the choice of the coffee sector, it was really a coincidence. Initially, I was a high-level triathlon coach. At one point, I wanted to secure my future and build a business. I was lucky, at that time, to be able to do it with my best friend, Enrico (Serena), who had already worked as an entrepreneur in the coffee industry (with another Barista project). It was a great opportunity to do a project between friends. So Barista really starts from our friendship, to Enrico and me. We met in high school when we were 15 and since then we have been best friends, but also, since 2004, partners.

Enrico is, in my opinion, a real businessman, more than I am myself. Together, our greatest strength is that of being very complementary both. His strengths complement mine and vice versa. The arrival of Laurent (Cugno) in business development has come to consolidate our team, it's really like the cement that came to solidify the foundations.

What is the most memorable moment in your career as an entrepreneur?

It's not so much a landmark event as an important decision that we made from the outset: to make a digital shift very early in the company's history, when everything related to social networks and the creation of content was just beginning. This decision brought us so much afterwards and it was the best path we could choose to take.

Otherwise, a defining moment, I would say like many companies: the pandemic. As much as it's a confronting moment for everyone when we had to make decisions that weren't always obvious, this period confirmed for us the importance of the decision we made at the start to bet big on the e-commerce and our content strategy on social networks, in particular. As we are a strong digital brand, the pandemic has allowed us to expand a lot and grow as a brand and as a company.

Your greatest pride? 

Every time someone shares a comment, a photo with a Barista sweater, a coffee, a mug or another accessory with our logo on social networks, it touches me and I am sincerely very proud of that. I never took it for granted and each time, it really touches me to see the impact, to see how people have appropriated our brand in their daily lives. It means that we succeeded in creating a strong community and that was part of my objectives and the dream behind the creation of my company.

On another note, having created an inclusive and healthy work environment where the people who work for us feel good and are happy is also a source of great pride.

What motivates you at work right now?

The same as for pride. I'm driven by being able to give back to the people who give us so much love and make up our community. I am also motivated, every day, by the fact that we have a team that is very much like a family and it is motivating to work with the beautiful people who make it up.

Looking back, would you have done anything differently?

It's easy to say, knowing how far we've come, that we would have done things differently, but I don't see things like that. If we hadn't gone through all the stages and the path we went through, we wouldn't be who we are and we wouldn't be where we are right now.

Going back, for me, is just to be able to determine the lessons that we want to draw from our experiences in order to be able to continue to move forward, to avoid repeating the mistakes that we have made and to continue to innovate with this which works.

What advice would you give to someone just starting out?

Be patient. It's not a sprint, it's a marathon.

What is your next project, your next product or your next launch?

As we like to innovate, we are always looking for what our customers are looking for and, for the next year, we have so many great things to come. We took the time to work on this for months, our two big projects that will see the light of day soon are the release of our oat drink specially designed for Baristas and the online sale of our residential equipment (machines and grinders). We are really proud to have taken the time to do it right and we are now ripe for this next step and these two big projects.

What is your wildest dream with the company?

I think we are a recognized brand throughout the province of Quebec. We took our time doing it and I think I would love to be able to replicate that across the country.

What has entrepreneurship taught you?

It's so much learning. I evolved in two performance environments: entrepreneurship and high-level sports coaching. Entrepreneurship is a sport. The learning I acquired as a coach allowed me to be a better entrepreneur and vice versa. I didn't have a revelation that completely changed my perception of things. I would say that it is full of lessons learned from all the experiences I have had in coaching and as an entrepreneur that have allowed me to learn.

Personally, over the years, I'm less operational and that allows me to step back, to become the strategist I've always wanted to be. I really appreciate each step, I'm less in the day to day that comes, especially at the beginning, with a lot of pressure and daily stress. And the further I go, the more I like it. Now I have a great team that I don't take for granted, and because I have a team, I can step back and create more macro projects that are innovative and the team enjoys working on.

What can we wish you for the future?

Just to have the necessary health to pursue my projects. I am lucky in life to be able to do what makes me happy, so just to be able to continue doing it is a privilege.

Many thanks to Maude Roy and Alexandre Sereno for their generosity and their time for this interview.

Fancy a good cup of Barista? You can find a wide selection of Barista products at Signé Local by clicking here.