Notes

In this episode, we sit down with Anthony Fassio, Chief Retail and Operations Officer at Verve Coffee Roasters—a 14-unit third-wave coffee brand based in Santa Cruz, known for its relationships with growers, surf-town roots, and quality-first approach.

Anthony’s specialty is taking craft brands from cult-favorite to national name without losing their “soul”. From Shake Shack to Salt & Straw to now Verve, he’s led the operational growth of beloved brands by building the systems and team development strategies they need to scale.

He shares:

  • How Verve is preparing for East Coast expansion
  • Why “the checklist” isn’t always just a checklist
  • How his early days growing up on a farm shaped his leadership style.

From launching task forces to rolling out training platforms, Anthony offers a practical, people-first approach to operations that’s built to last.

This conversation is a deep dive into what it takes to grow a values-driven business—from identifying sacred elements of a brand to making change stick across regions. Anthony opens up about building trust with founders, what most leaders get wrong during early scale, and why being “number two” is where he thrives most.

Chapters

  • 00:00 Introduction to Anthony Fassio and Verve Coffee Roasters
  • 02:31 Understanding Third Wave Coffee
  • 06:45 Assessing Brand Culture and Team Dynamics
  • 09:34 Balancing Tradition and Evolution in Brand Systems
  • 12:32 The Importance of Task Forces in Brand Development
  • 14:39 Indicators of Readiness for Brand Expansion
  • 16:44 Early Wins in Communication Strategies
  • 19:50 Learning from Misjudgments in Operations
  • 23:08 The Shift in Training Leadership Roles
  • 24:54 The Evolution of Content Creation
  • 25:52 Finding Your Niche in the Food Industry
  • 27:15 The Role of a Number Two
  • 28:35 Building Trust in Teams
  • 31:01 Identifying Builders vs. Optimizers
  • 32:46 The Importance of Passion in Hiring
  • 34:43 Curiosity as a Key Indicator
  • 36:34 Training as a Priority for Growth
  • 40:43 Lightning Round: Quickfire Questions

About Us

‍Opus is the training operations platform purpose-built for the frontline. Train 100% of your team in 101 languages on the job to quickly get them up the productivity curve. With full visibility across your workforce, you get the frontline business intelligence needed to drive your business.

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