Podcasts about great american cookie company

I first met Marcus nine years ago when he began services at my nonprofit, Puzzle Pieces. He had big goals for himself from day one, never letting his disability hold him back or stop him from dreaming. One of those dreams was to be on stage sharing his love for dance. Marcus connected with a local dance studio, where he was able to find a job and perform on stage in front of thousands of people. Marcus secured a second job at Great American Cookie Company, where he excels at customer service and cookie decorating. But Marcus' biggest goal was to live independently. With the help of our team at Puzzle Pieces and Marcus' dedication to learning the necessary life skills to make his dream happen, he moved into his own apartment.  Don't miss Marcus' full story! His accomplishments are incredible and offer so much hope for parents raising a child with a disability.  Hey, there. If you are new to my podcast, I'm Amanda and through my social media platform, Pieces of Me, I share my journey of being a sibling to someone with a rare disability, a founder and director of a nonprofit serving those with intellectual disabilities, and finding balance as a working mom, wife, and business leader. Facebook or Instagram is a great way to connect with me! Just search @piecesofmebyamanda   – I would love to hear from you! Check out my latest project, The Gratitude Journal, for moms raising children with a disability. This is a collaboration with mommas from across the globe – build your village and find joy in the hard through daily gratitude. Check out my children's book, Owen the Wonderer, that helps teach kids about differences and acceptance. And my Ebook that helps talks about the many emotions of being a sibling to someone with an intellectual disability.  Oh, and don't miss out on the be… collection – a line of intentional gifts that serve as a daily reminder for women to BE the person they are meant to be! I also offer coaching sessions for families impacted by disabilities, for women wanting to align their purpose or for those interested in launching their own nonprofit.  Check out the coaching packages on www.piecesofme.org  You might hear me talk about my health journey, only because I have discovered how we “fuel” our body is the key to “fueling” our purpose & dreams. I have figured out how to create more energy in order to keep dreaming and executing my vision, and I would love to share it with you. Interested in discovering the fuel that will ignite your body & mind to live life on purpose? Check out: www.AmandaBoarman.arbonne.com    Don't know where to start but want to know more? Just email me! Piecesofmebyamanda@gmail.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/fuel-your-purpose/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/fuel-your-purpose/support

David is the Founder and Director of Strategy at 3 Owl, an award-winning creative agency that creates websites that stand out from the noise. They've worked with companies like Mellow Mushroom, Great American Cookie Company, VitaLink, Taco Mac, and Wahoo. Numbers-wise, 3 Owl has 40+ employees and over seven figures in revenue. At the start of Covid-19, David had to fire 80% of his agency's staff in one day. Despite the setback, he and the small team that stayed on never missed a deadline and continued to generate millions of dollars in added revenue for their clients. They also managed to grow 3 Owl by 20% each year since. In 2021, David also wrote a book called “Small By Design: The Entrepreneur's Guide for Growing Big While Staying Small,” has been named a bestseller by the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. Social Media Links: Social Media Links: Website: https://3owl.agency/ 3Owl LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/3-owl-media/ David's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-feldman-atl/ 3Owl Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/3owl.agency/ David's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dfeldatl/ 3 Owl Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/3owl.agency/ Amazon Books: https://www.amazon.com/Small-Design-Entrepreneurs-Growing-Staying-ebook/dp/B09X6FR61S

Deeply involved in the community, Michael Coles is a transformational leader, accomplished entrepreneur, education advocate and motivational speaker. He is living proof that there are no limits to what we as individuals can accomplish. He brings his story to life in his book “Time To Get Tough” How cookies Coffee And A Crash Led To Success In Business And Life. After a successful 19 year career in the clothing business Michael tested his entrepreneurial skills in 1977 when he co-founded Great American Cookie Company with an investment of only $8000. Shortly after starting the Company, he was involved in a near-fatal motorcycle accident and was told by doctors he would never walk again unaided. As Michael recovered thru a self-designed rehabilitation program he took the Company from its first store in Perimeter Mall in Atlanta to hundreds of stores nationwide and at the same time set 3 coast-to-coast bicycling records. When Michael started the Company there were three major cookie companies in business; one had almost 100 stores and the other two had fifty each. When he sold the Company in 1998 with sales over $100 million, Great American Cookie Company was the largest franchisor of cookie stores and the other three companies no longer existed.

In this episode of the Thoughtful Entrepreneur, your host Josh Elledge speaks with the Author and Founder of https://3owl.agency/ (3 Owl Agency), https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-feldman-atl/ (David Feldman). 3 Owl Agency is a quick-thinking team of designers and thinkers who create tailored, data-driven creative solutions that adapt to changing client needs and enable transformational growth. David gives a fresh perspective on running small agencies and using them to make a huge impact. Business owners shouldn't limit themselves to small clients just because of the agency size they run. Setting out to build a company is an excellent opportunity to develop your own culture based on your value.    Key points from this episode: Leveraging small agencies to your advantage The playbook of how you can grow a business by intentionally staying small but making a significant impact on the world How the roles of being a CEO change once you hit the higher 7 figures The power in small companies Benefits of running a smaller company Don't limit yourself to small clients just because you're a small agency Building a company means you get a unique opportunity to develop your own culture   About David Feldman: David is the Founder and Director of Strategy at 3 Owl, an award-winning creative agency that creates websites that stand out from the noise. They've worked with companies like Mellow Mushroom, Great American Cookie Company, VitaLink, Taco Mac, and Wahoo. Numbers-wise, 3 Owl has 40+ employees and over seven figures in revenue. At the start of Covid-19, David had to fire 80% of his agency's staff in one day. Despite the setback, he and the small team that stayed on never missed a deadline and continued to generate millions of dollars in added revenue for their clients. They also managed to grow 3Owl by 20% each year since. In 2021, David also wrote a book abouthttps://bookshop.org/books/small-by-design-the-entrepreneur-s-guide-for-growing-big-while-staying-small/9781631958854 ( how to scale a small business all while staying intentionally small), which is to be released by his publisher on May 15. About 3 Owl: 3 Owl is a cutting-edge branding agency that works with entrepreneurs with big dreams and goals. To equip their clients for success, they design fluid brand identities supported by the latest technologies and tools. They also build data-driven creative solutions that adapt to clients' shifting demands and support their transformational growth. Links Mentioned in this Episode: Want to learn more? Check out the 3 Owl website at  https://3owl.agency/ (https://3owl.agency/) Check out the 3 Owl Instagram at  https://www.instagram.com/3owl.agency/ (https://www.instagram.com/3owl.agency/) Check out the 3 Owl Facebook at  https://www.facebook.com/3owl.agency/ (https://www.facebook.com/3owl.agency/) Check out David Feldman on LinkedIn at  https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-feldman-atl/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-feldman-atl/) Don't forget to subscribe to The Thoughtful Entrepreneur and thank you for listening.  Tune in next time! More from UpMyInfluence: Tickets for the FIRST Annual Fame and Profit Summit 2022 are on sale now! https://fameandprofit.com/tickets (Check it out HERE!) ️  We are actively booking guests for our The Thoughtful Entrepreneur.https://upmyinfluence.com/guest ( Schedule HERE). Are you a 6-figure consultant? I've got high-level intros for you.https://upmyinfluence.com/b2b ( Learn more here). What is your #1 Lead Generation BLOCKER? http://upmyinfluence.com/quiz (Take my free quiz here).

David is the Founder and Director of Strategy at 3 Owl, an award-winning creative agency that creates websites that stand out from the noise. They've worked with companies like Mellow Mushroom, Great American Cookie Company, VitaLink, Taco Mac, and Wahoo. At the start of Covid-19, David had to fire 80% of his agency's staff in one day. Despite the setback, he and the small team that stayed on never missed a deadline and continued to generate millions of dollars in added revenue for their clients. They also managed to grow 3 Owl by 20% each year since. In 2021, David also wrote the book Small By Design about how to scale a small business all while staying intentionally small Highlights Who David Feldman is What being a small team means for David How he operates a small team as a big company As a small team, what was their experience like creating value and receiving feedback from their clients What the important is for being always available for clients What a small by the design team is What is the next goal for the book Where to find more information about David and his team Episode Resources Connect with Raul Hernandez Ochoa https://www.linkedin.com/in/dogoodwork https://dogoodwork.io/work-with-raul https://dogoodwork.io/podcast Connect with David Feldman https://smallbydesign.co/ https://3owl.agency/ https://www.facebook.com/3owl.agency/ https://www.instagram.com/3owl.agency/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/3-owl-media/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-feldman-atl https://www.instagram.com/dfeldatl 

Michael J. Coles: Cookies, Coffee and Kennesaw on Capital Club Radio Please join Michael Flock of FLOCK Specialty Finance as he interviews Michael J. Coles, Atlanta business executive, serial entrepreneur, education advocate, well-known public speaker, the namesake of the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University and author of Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life. His book explains how he started a $100 million company with only $8,000, overcame a near-fatal motorcycle accident, set three transcontinental cycling world records and ran for Congress twice. Prior to writing his book, Michael was the Chairman of the Board for BrandBank and for Brand Group Holdings, Inc. Additionally, he was the former CEO of Caribou Coffee from 2003-2012 and co-founder of the Great American Cookie Company in 1977. Moreover, he was in the clothing industry for over 19 years and launched two clothing businesses. Michael has been a highly engaged philanthropist with organizations such as Hillels of Georgia, the Georgia Film Commission, the University System of Georgia Board of Regents, the Kennesaw State University Foundation Board and the Walker School Board. He and his wife, Donna, have also supported the American Lung Association, Georgia Special Olympics, Scottish Rite Children's Medical Center, and the March of Dimes. He and his wife reside in Atlanta and Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Here is a glimpse of what Michael shared in the interview. “…it doesn't matter how many thousands of miles you ride, it doesn't matter how many weeks, or months, or even years you might put into something, it's the last five miles that count.” “So, I've always believed that the difference between success and failure is how you're prepared…How you deal with the unexpected.” “Information, innovation…implementation, and then the last one, the most important one is improvement.” Capital Club Radio Hosted by: Michael Flock Sponsored by: Flock Specialty Finance Providing a forum for leaders in the middle market segment which has typically been undeserved by traditional banking. Listeners gain valuable business insights and perspectives to deal with market uncertainty. Topics include: key success factors, both personal and professional, dealing with adversity, outlook for the industry and your business. For more info about Michael Flock and Flock Specialty Finance visit: http://www.FlockFinance.com To listen to more episodes visit: http://www.CapitalClubRadio.com To nominate or submit a guest request visit: https://www.OnAirGuest.com To view more photos visit: http://www.ProBusinessPictures.com ‹ › × × Previous Next jQuery(function() { // Set blueimp gallery options jQuery.extend(blueimp.Gallery.prototype.options, { useBootstrapModal: false, hidePageScrollbars: false }); });  

On this episode of Emerging Brands, Andy Wiederhorn, chief executive officer of FAT Brands talks about the impact of the pandemic on FAT Brands, partnering with third party delivery, and the benefits of becoming a franchisee. Wiederhorn shares with us the impact the pandemic had on FAT Brands saying, “The impact of the pandemic on FAT Brands was really challenging because we have multiple categories of restaurant companies, we have QSR brands, we have fast casual brands, we have casual dining brands and polished casual dining brands. So the effect here across our different brands was different in each category.” He adds, “the brands that were the most resilient of course were the QSR brands and the fast casual brands that always had delivery and togo and they went from thirty or forty percent delivery and to eighty five percent delivery and togo.” FAT Brands has fifteen different brands including Johnny Rockets, Hot Dog on a Stick, Marble Slab Creamery, Pretzelmaker, Round Table Pizza, Great American Cookie Company, FAT Burger, Elevation Burger, Yalla Mediterranean, Buffalo's Cafe, Hurricane Grill, and their most recent acquisition of Twin Peaks. Wiederhorn says, “recently our acquisition of Twin Peaks the sports lodge is really our first entry into polished casual dining, where you have much larger average unit volumes five or six million dollars a restaurant. These restaurants are quite large, six thousand square feet. They cost five or six million dollars to build and you know it's a whole different business being in the sports bar business.” Wiederhorn talks about the benefits of being a franchisee partner saying, “being part of the FAT Brands family brings all kinds of benefits to the franchisee. Our purchasing power today is more than five hundred million dollars a year in food, paper, beverages, and so when you're a franchisee joining our family you're getting two or three percent lower food costs just because of our global purchasing power.”  To hear more about the benefits of becoming a franchisee partner in regards to marketing power, the value of third party partnerships, and why restaurants should consider being on the plant-based protein train, tune into this episode of Emerging Brands on Apple Podcasts.

Today's guest: Michael J. ColesMichael J. Coles, the cofounder of the Great American Cookie Company and the former CEO of Caribou Coffee, did not follow a conventional path into business. He does not have an Ivy League pedigree or an MBA from a top-ten business school. He grew up poor, starting work at the age of thirteen. He had many false starts and painful defeats, but Coles has a habit of defying expectations. His life and career have been about turning obstacles into opportunities, tragedies into triumphs, and poverty into philanthropy.In Time to Get Tough, Coles explains how he started a $100-million company with only $8,000, overcame a near-fatal motorcycle accident, ran for the U.S. Congress, and set three transcontinental cycling world records. His story also offers a firsthand perspective on the business, political, and philanthropic climate in the last quarter of the twentieth century and serves as an important case study for anyone interested in overcoming a seemingly insurmountable challenge. Readers will also discover practical leadership lessons and unconventional ways of approaching business.On this episode:Amber is joined by author and entrepreneur Michael Coles for a conversation on knowing poverty, growing through struggle, and achieving your dreams."Tweetable Quotes:"We should strive for a life that we wouldn't trade for anything." -Amber Fuhriman"My story is much more about things that went wrong than things that went right." -Michael Coles"There's no such thing has devoting too much time to building your team... the people around you are essential to your success." -Amber Fuhriman"The difference between success and failure is how we react to the unexpected." -Michael ColesMichael J. Coles:https://www.michaelcoles.comIf you are interested in connecting with Amber, send an email to amber@amberfuhriman.com.Connect with other incredible people looking to break out of the corporate mindset by joining the More Than Corporate Facebook group: http://bit.ly/2MuWn53Schedule a connection call with Amber: https://calendly.com/amberfuhriman/connection-call?month=2021-05 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

After a successful 19-year career in the clothing business, Michael Coles tested his entrepreneurial skills in 1977, when he co-founded Great American Cookie Company with an investment of only $8,000. When he started the Great American Cookie Company, there were three major cookie companies in business. One had almost 100 stores and the other two had 50 each. When he sold the company in 1998 with sales over $100 million, the Great American Cookie Company was the largest franchisor of cookie stores with the other companies having already closed down. He is now a transformational leader and the author of Time to Get Tough. Let's dive in and hear more from Michael how he created the $100 Million Cookie Company. Things you will learn in this episode: [00:01 - 06:42] Opening Segment  I introduce today's guest, Michael ColesBio Make sure to check out guestio.com Michael gives us some background on her storyGrowing up in Buffalo, NY Going through bankruptcy as a family Deciding to set out and start working at 13 School life [06:43 - 19:16] The $100 Million Cookie Company   Michael talks about his social circles and work life growing up The impact of his mentor Michael shares about his life after high school Moving in with his brother Getting into collegeEncouraged to work first before college The job that propelled Michael forwardManaging a rough territory in a clothing business Growing accounts for almost 3 years Setting out into Detroit Michael's journey into the cookie industry A word from our sponsors [19:17 - 28:46] Time to Get ToughMichael shares how his accident set up the rest of his life Being told your limits Beginning to get his life backLessons from setting records in biking Learning about business We learn more from our mistakes The story behind Caribou CoffeeCreating loyalty Making decisions as the CEO Getting held back by ‘good'[28:47 - 36:30] Closing SegmentWho you know or what you know Learn what you don't know Surround yourself with the right people Michael's advice around mentorship and coaching ThE RaNDoM RoUnDHow to engage with MichaelLinks below Final words Tweetable Quotes: “You just don't realize the impact you might have on somebody's life.” - Michael Coles“You got two choices: you can just give up, or you can say, ‘I'm going to finish this, I'm going to learn from it so I can move on so I don't make the same mistakes…” - Michael ColesResources Mentioned: Time to Get ToughCaribou CoffeeExecutionThe ReckoningConnect and engage with Michael on LinkedIn. Check out https://michaelcoles.com/ and secure your key to success.Did you love the value that we are putting out in the show? LEAVE A REVIEW and tell us what you think about the episode so we can continue putting out great content just for you! Share this episode and help someone who wants to connect with world-class people. Jump on over to travischappell.com/makemypodcast and let my team make you your very own show!If you want to learn how to build YOUR network, check out my website travischappell.com. You can connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Be sure to join The Lounge to become part of the community that's setting up REAL relationships that add value and create investments.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Mike Montague interviews Michael Coles on How to Succeed at Getting Tough. Michael J. Coles, the co-founder of the Great American Cookie Company and the former CEO of Caribou Coffee, did not follow a conventional path into business. He does not have an Ivy League pedigree or an MBA from a top-ten business school. He grew up poor, starting work at the age of thirteen. He had many false starts and painful defeats, but Coles has a habit of defying expectations. His life and career have been about turning obstacles into opportunities, tragedies into triumphs, and poverty into philanthropy.   Get his book, Time To Get Tough, at: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627    In this episode: The best attitude, behavior, and technique on how to succeed at getting tough Why Michael says it’s Time to Get Tough - TTGT Take risks early in your career Hope for the best and plan for the worst It’s okay if you forget the oven mitts...once A mistake Michael made his first day as CEO of Caribou Coffee Before you figure out how to do more, figure out what you’re doing well Michael’s definition of success and a challenge he had to overcome   Podcast: https://howtosucceed.libsyn.com/ iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-succeed-podcast-by/id1097591566 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/00JoVzRtMzmQB5Ae5RWWQZ   The How to Succeed Podcast is a public and free podcast from Sandler Training, the worldwide leader in sales, management, and customer service training for individuals all the way up to Fortune 500 companies with over 250 locations around the globe.   Find white papers, webinars, and more in our free Sandler E-Learning Library: https://www.sandler.com/sell   Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a comment!

Mike Montague interviews Michael Coles on How to Succeed at Getting Tough. Michael J. Coles, the co-founder of the Great American Cookie Company and the former CEO of Caribou Coffee, did not follow a conventional path into business. He does not have an Ivy League pedigree or an MBA from a top-ten business school. He grew up poor, starting work at the age of thirteen. He had many false starts and painful defeats, but Coles has a habit of defying expectations. His life and career have been about turning obstacles into opportunities, tragedies into triumphs, and poverty into philanthropy.   Get his book, Time To Get Tough, at: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627    In this episode: The best attitude, behavior, and technique on how to succeed at getting tough Why Michael says it's Time to Get Tough - TTGT Take risks early in your career Hope for the best and plan for the worst It's okay if you forget the oven mitts...once A mistake Michael made his first day as CEO of Caribou Coffee Before you figure out how to do more, figure out what you're doing well Michael's definition of success and a challenge he had to overcome   Podcast: https://howtosucceed.libsyn.com/ iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-succeed-podcast-by/id1097591566 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/00JoVzRtMzmQB5Ae5RWWQZ   The How to Succeed Podcast is a public and free podcast from Sandler Training, the worldwide leader in sales, management, and customer service training for individuals all the way up to Fortune 500 companies with over 250 locations around the globe.   Find white papers, webinars, and more in our free Sandler E-Learning Library: https://www.sandler.com/sell   Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a comment!

Mike Montague interviews Michael Coles on How to Succeed at Getting Tough. Michael J. Coles, the co-founder of the Great American Cookie Company and the former CEO of Caribou Coffee, did not follow a conventional path into business. He does not have an Ivy League pedigree or an MBA from a top-ten business school. He grew up poor, starting work at the age of thirteen. He had many false starts and painful defeats, but Coles has a habit of defying expectations. His life and career have been about turning obstacles into opportunities, tragedies into triumphs, and poverty into philanthropy.   Get his book, Time To Get Tough, at: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627    In this episode: The best attitude, behavior, and technique on how to succeed at getting tough Why Michael says it's Time to Get Tough - TTGT Take risks early in your career Hope for the best and plan for the worst It's okay if you forget the oven mitts...once A mistake Michael made his first day as CEO of Caribou Coffee Before you figure out how to do more, figure out what you're doing well Michael's definition of success and a challenge he had to overcome   Podcast: https://howtosucceed.libsyn.com/ iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-succeed-podcast-by/id1097591566 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/00JoVzRtMzmQB5Ae5RWWQZ   The How to Succeed Podcast is a public and free podcast from Sandler Training, the worldwide leader in sales, management, and customer service training for individuals all the way up to Fortune 500 companies with over 250 locations around the globe.   Find white papers, webinars, and more in our free Sandler E-Learning Library: https://www.sandler.com/sell   Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a comment!

Michael Coles, Founder, former Chairman, and CEO of The Great American Cookie Company; former Chairman, CEO, and Board member of Caribou Coffee and (among many other accomplishments), author of Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life. Because Story Tuesday's conversation is so packed and full of value, I decided to share it with you in two parts! In the previous episode, Michael shared stories, metaphors and lessons he learned to live by and thrive. We talked about the “Goliath” analogy, stepping into the arena, and dig into Michael's first and most influential mentor with stories and lessons he learned that served him as a future co-founder and CEO. On Story Tuesday, our story and the lesson-filled conversation continues with talking about success, the role caring for people – both your teams and your customers – plays in success, and how to engage in the most empowering comparison and competition to drive your personal and business growth.  This episode is brought to you by Adaptability Coaching and Consulting. Want to reduce exhaustion, overwhelm, stress, and increase passion, engagement, and growth in yourself and/or your company? Learn to turn tough circumstances, reactions, and exhaustion into energy, excitement, and excellence for you and your company. Learn to become fast, flexible, and formidable. Learn more at www.DrYishai.com/Coaching or DrYishai.com/Consulting Guest Links:Website: https://michaelcoles.com/Buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627 Host Links:Podcast Website: https://thebusinesscouchwithdryishai.buzzsprout.com/Connect with Dr. Yishai: https://www.DrYishai.com/contact Dr. Yishai's email: Yishai@DrYishai.comDr. Yishai's Instagram: @DrYishai or https://www.instagram.com/dryishai/Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is for general informational purposes only and shall not be relied on or construed as coaching advice. © 2020 Yishai B LLC. All rights reserved. 

Michael Coles, Founder, former Chairman and CEO of The Great American Cookie Company; former Chairman, CEO and Board member of Caribou Coffee and (among many other accomplishments), author of Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life. Because Story Tuesday's conversation is so packed and full of value, I decided to share it with you in two parts! On Story Sunday, Michael shares stories, metaphors and lessons the he learned to live by and thrive. We talk about the “Goliath” analogy, stepping into the arena, and dig into Michael's fist and most influential mentor with stories and lessons he learned that served him as future co-founder and CEO.On Story Tuesday, our story and lesson filled conversation will continue with talking about success, the role caring for people – both your teams and your customers – plays in success, and how to engage in the most empowering comparison and competition to drive your personal and business growth.  This episode is brought to you by Adaptability Coaching and Consulting. Want to reduce exhaustion, overwhelm, stress, and increase passion, engagement, and growth in yourself and/or your company? Learn to turn tough circumstances, reactions, and exhaustion into energy, excitement, and excellence for you and your company. Learn to become fast, flexible, and formidable. Learn more at www.DrYishai.com/Coaching or DrYishai.com/Consulting Guest Links:Website: https://michaelcoles.com/Buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627 Host Links:Podcast Website: https://thebusinesscouchwithdryishai.buzzsprout.com/Connect with Dr. Yishai: https://www.DrYishai.com/contact Dr. Yishai's email: Yishai@DrYishai.comDr. Yishai's Instagram: @DrYishai or https://www.instagram.com/dryishai/Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is for general informational purposes only and shall not be relied on or construed as coaching advice. © 2020 Yishai B LLC. All rights reserved. 

This week on The Business Couch with Dr. Yishai, I sat down to chat with Michael Coles, Founder, former Chairman and CEO of The Great American Cookie Company; former Chairman, CEO and Board member of Caribou Coffee and (among many other accomplishments), author of Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life. You got a double dose of insight this week because our conversation was so packed and full of value.  On Insight Sunday, we discussed the road and meaning of “success,” and what differentiates between the road of failure and the road of success. On Insight Tuesday, we talked about the importance of communication and listening in leadership and business, and Michael's formula to create an amazing customer experience.Today, I'm diving deeper into why customer experience matters and my thoughts on Michael Cole's Experience Factor formula. This episode is brought to you by Adaptability Coaching. Want to reduce exhaustion, overwhelm, stress, and increase passion, engagement, and growth in yourself and your company? Learn to turn tough circumstances, reactions, and exhaustion into energy, excitement, and excellence for you and your company. Learn to become fast, flexible, and formidable. Learn more at www.DrYishai.com/CoachingConnect with Dr. Yishai: Podcast Site: https://thebusinesscouchwithdryishai.buzzsprout.com/Website: https://www.DrYishai.com/Email: Yishai@DrYishai.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dryishai/Instagram: @DrYishai or https://www.instagram.com/dryishai/ Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is for general informational purposes only and shall not be relied on or construed as coaching advice. © 2020 Yishai B LLC. All rights reserved. 

Michael Coles, Founder, former Chairman and CEO of The Great American Cookie Company; former Chairman, CEO and Board member of Caribou Coffee and (among many other accomplishments), author of Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life. Because Insight Sunday's conversation is so packed and full of value, I decided to share it with you in two parts! In the previous episode, Insight Sunday, Michael talked about his relatable stories, struggles, and success. We discuss the road and meaning of “success,” and what differentiates between the road of failure and the road of success. On Insight Tuesday, our insightful conversation continues with talking about the importance of communication and listening in leadership and business, and Michael's formula to create an amazing customer experience. This episode is brought to you by Adaptability Coaching and Consulting. Want to reduce exhaustion, overwhelm, stress, and increase passion, engagement, and growth in yourself and/or your company? Learn to turn tough circumstances, reactions, and exhaustion into energy, excitement, and excellence for you and your company. Learn to become fast, flexible, and formidable. Learn more at www.DrYishai.com/Coaching or DrYishai.com/Consulting Guest Links:Website: https://michaelcoles.com/Buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627 Host Links:Podcast Website: https://thebusinesscouchwithdryishai.buzzsprout.com/Connect with Dr. Yishai: https://www.DrYishai.com/contact Dr. Yishai's email: Yishai@DrYishai.comDr. Yishai's Instagram: @DrYishai or https://www.instagram.com/dryishai/Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is for general informational purposes only and shall not be relied on or construed as coaching advice. © 2020 Yishai B LLC. All rights reserved. 

Ep #79: Struggle and the Road of Success Part 1 with Michael J. ColesMichael Coles, Founder, former Chairman and CEO of The Great American Cookie Company; former Chairman, CEO and Board member of Caribou Coffee and (among many other accomplishments), author of Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life. Because Insight Sunday's conversation is so packed and full of value, I decided to share it with you in two parts! On Insight Sunday, Michael talks about his relatable stories, struggles, and success. We discuss the road and meaning of “success,” and what differentiates between the road of failure and the road of success. On Insight Tuesday, our insightful conversation will continue with us discussing the importance of communication and listening in leadership and business, and Michael's formula to create an amazing customer experience. This episode is brought to you by Adaptability Coaching and Consulting. Want to reduce exhaustion, overwhelm, stress, and increase passion, engagement, and growth in yourself and/or your company? Learn to turn tough circumstances, reactions, and exhaustion into energy, excitement, and excellence for you and your company. Learn to become fast, flexible, and formidable. Learn more at www.DrYishai.com/Coaching or DrYishai.com/Consulting  Guest Links:Website: https://michaelcoles.com/Buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627 Host Links:Podcast Website: https://thebusinesscouchwithdryishai.buzzsprout.com/Connect with Dr. Yishai: https://www.DrYishai.com/contact Dr. Yishai's email: Yishai@DrYishai.comDr. Yishai's Instagram: @DrYishai or https://www.instagram.com/dryishai/Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is for general informational purposes only and shall not be relied on or construed as coaching advice. © 2020 Yishai B LLC. All rights reserved. 

How Cookies, Coffee, and a devastating crash led to success in the cookie industry. Michael Coles, CEO/President Caribou Coffee Company, Co-Founder Great American Cookie Company (over $100Million before selling), Chairman, Author Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led To Success in Business and Life is interviewed by David Cogan founder of Eliances and host of the Eliances Heroes show broadcast on am and fm network channels, internet radio, and online syndication.

Michael J. Coles is a co-founder of the Great American Cookie Company and former CEO of Caribou Coffee. After a successful 19-year career in the clothing business, Michael tested his entrepreneurial skills in 1977, when he co-founded Great American Cookie Company with a joint investment of only $8,000. Shortly after starting the company, he was involved in a near-fatal motorcycle accident and was told by doctors he would never walk again unaided. As he recovered through a self-designed rehabilitation program, he took the company from its first store in Perimeter Mall in Atlanta to hundreds of stores nationwide and, at the same time, set three coast-to-coast bicycling records. Michael's commitment to community service led him to run for public office in 1996 as the democratic nominee for the House of Representatives in the Sixth District of Georgia, and in 1998 he won the democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, challenging Senator Paul Coverdell. In 2003, Coles accepted the corporate reins of Caribou Coffee Company as chairman, CEO and president. Over the next five years, Coles more than doubled the size of the company, extending the brand reach domestically and abroad. In September 2005, he successfully took the company public on NASDAQ under the symbol CBOU. Coles went on to join others in founding Charter Bank & Trust and served as its chairman, taking the bank public and selling the publicly traded company to Synovus Bank.  Coles is also the former chairman of Brand Holding Company and chairman of Brand Bank. Michael was appointed by Governor Roy Barnes in 1999 to chair the Georgia Film, Video and Music Advisory Board.  During his four years as chairman, Michael and his board successfully passed HB610, which was the first-ever tax incentive of its kind in Georgia. That bill allowed the film industry to begin a rebirth, going from $170 million in 1999 to over $1.5 billion in economic impact by 2003. Today, Georgia's film industry generates over $12 billion in economic impact. Having contributed much of their time and resources to education, the arts, environment and philanthropic organizations, Michael and his wife, Donna were honored as the Georgia Philanthropists of the Year in 1995. Michael was appointed by Governor Roy Barnes in 2001 to serve on the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. In recognition of Michael's success, leadership, and benevolence, Kennesaw State University, under the authority granted by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, declared that the institution's School of Business be named and known in perpetuity as the Michael J. Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University.  In 1999, Michael received the Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree from Kennesaw State University. On October 17, 2018, Michael officially launched his book titled “Time to Get Tough: How Cookies Coffee and a Crash Led To Success in Business and Life.” During this episode, Michael shares many entrepreneurial tips, including, you don't have to be the smartest person in the room, and surround yourself with good people and you'll be surprised at how good they will make you look.

Michael J. Coles, the co-founder of the Great American Cookie Company and the former CEO of Caribou Coffee, did not follow a conventional path into business. He does not have an Ivy League pedigree or an MBA from a top-ten business school. He grew up poor, starting work at the age of thirteen. He had many false starts and painful defeats, but Coles has a habit of defying expectations. His life and career have been about turning obstacles into opportunities, tragedies into triumphs, and poverty into philanthropy. On this Episode:  Learn how the importance of listening turned into Michael's power in communication and sales Hear how Michael was able to drive buy-in for a new strategy or vision Learn about the importance of teamwork Hear Michael talk about not having to be the smartest guy in the room Key Takeaways: Fully engage with every individual you speak to Execution triangle- skill set, tool set, and mindset to execute well Your team needs to understand why you are doing what you are doing so they can rally behind you. Tweetable Quotes: "The good is what holds you back." "People always told me what my limits where, and it always gave me incentive to prove them wrong." "You can disagree, but you don't have to be disagreeable” Michael Coles: http://michaelcoles.com/ (http://michaelcoles.com/) His book, Time to Get Tough, can be found on Amazon Resources: If you want to see how we can help you in digital marketing: https://gregjrice.com/inflection/ (https://gregjrice.com/inflection/) Join me on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/jointhecommunicationnation (https://www.facebook.com/groups/jointhecommunicationnation)

Tara Murphy owns 360 Media, an entertainment, lifestyle, and hospitality agency that focuses on public relations, event planning, and digital marketing. In the last couple of years, the agency has expanded into hotel work and commercial real estate. 360 Media will have been in business 25 years as of next January. In this interview, Tara describes how her agency utilizes a variety of complementary narratives, images, and quotes layered on different platforms (social, email, print TV) to build a “big picture” storyline and cadence a client's message. Tara explains that a lot of companies have ineffective PR because they fail to link their messages across the various platforms. 360-Media often educates clients on how to figure out message cadencing and how to make everything work together. 360 Media's expansion into the commercial real estate market segment came about when the agency was tasked to promote Atlanta's Krog Street Market, one of the first “food halls” to gain global recognition. Tara explains that Krog Street Market could have been a glorified food court, but it became much more than that . . . and was pivotal in rejuvenating the neighborhood around it.  Understanding a client's goals and objectives, mapping out a strategy, and then building a PR program with integrated story-telling, place-making, and branding components can change commercial real estate from a B2B proposition into a personal “what's coming to my neighborhood” lifestyle play.  Tara provides tips on how to write and submit press releases in today's environment, what makes something newsworthy, and how to help a client find the unique “angle” that makes a “me too” announcement stand out. (This understanding is the light-bulb moment.) Less is more, Tara says. You have to target your audience, then customize the pieces for each of those targeted audiences. Tara notes a couple of things she might have done differently when she started: She feels she should have been more ready to follow her intuition,  She made the mistake of extending too much credit to financially-strapped clients The things that have helped 360 Media succeed for almost a quarter decade: Being open to morph and willing to take on new challenges Keeping a diverse client base For the past 2 years, 360 Media has published the Atlanta 100, an end-of-the workweek e-newsletter and website (theatlanta100.com), which each week features twelve 100-word stories and 100-second videos on topics of intrigue in the Atlanta area. Lots of information . . . quick and easy access. Tara can be reached on her agency's website at 360media.net or on Instagram at 360 Media, Inc (@360mediainc).   Transcript Follows: Welcome to the Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast. I'm your host, Rob Kischuk, and I am joined today by Tara Murphy, Owner at 360 Media, based in my own hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. Welcome to the podcast, Tara. TARA: Thank you so much for having me. ROB: Thank you for coming on. I wish that we were not sheltering in place and we could then actually meet up in Atlanta and do a live interview. Those are always fun. But we will call that for another time. Why don't you start off by diving into 360 Media and where 360 Media excels? TARA: Sure. 360 Media is an entertainment, lifestyle, and hospitality agency. We focus on PR and a little bit of event planning and then digital marketing. Our sweet spot is traditional PR, and we are about to celebrate our 25th anniversary in January of 2021, which is very weird to say. We've morphed over the years but always have stayed under that umbrella of entertainment, lifestyle, and hospitality. That's our focus and the sectors that we work with. It's been really interesting the last couple of years. We've expanded a little bit into hotel work, commercial real estate. We have a lot of those clients who say that we make corporate cool. We take commercial real estate and turn it more into a lifestyle play, which is really fascinating and interesting. It's been a wild ride over the years, and we've continued to morph. But PR has been the area we've always continued to excel and focus on. ROB: Congratulations, by the way, on that 25 years. Hopefully you'll be in a good position to actually plan an event for that, because that would be an excellent thing to be able to do from where we are right now. TARA: Thank you. Yeah, I've had a couple of people say the same thing, and I'm like, “We still have 6 months!” But that's going to fly by. ROB: For sure, it will. It's interesting you mention that shift in commercial real estate. What do you think it is that has made it shift so that normal people are interested in development of cities and new things that are happening? Nobody really gets excited about an office building usually, but something indeed I think has changed with the emergence of let's say Curbed and some of the blogs in the space and that sort of thing. TARA: Yeah, good point on Curbed. I think they've really helped make it accessible. For years, everyone just thought of real estate – there would be a sign in front of a building or in a window, and it was like, “Okay, what tenant's going to go in there?” But I would say probably in the last 5 to 7 years, it's really turned a lot more into the storytelling, the place-making, the brand awareness, because you're creating these pockets in cities that are little neighborhoods. Obviously, you live in Atlanta; a lot of people these days, because of the traffic and the growth, are staying in their 3-5 mile radius around their home. They want to know, “Do I have those everyday needs accessible?” and “What's coming into my neighborhood?”, whether that's a great little restaurant or a boutique or some sort of service that you want to be able to use. I think people get more excited about “this is what's coming to my neighborhood.” People are really thinking about the needs of the neighborhood. Also, what's really popular in Atlanta is not just taking buildings and revving them – actually renovating, going in and repurposing. I think people have gotten really excited, so that's opened the door to a little bit more interest and knowledge from the general public. It's funny; with a lot of the real estate clients that we've had, it all started because we got brought on for Krog Street Market, when that got announced here. For those that don't know, that's a big food hall in town. It was one of the first food halls that made a mark globally, and it was interesting being part of that because people look at that and say, “It could've been a glorified food court” – but it wasn't that, and it isn't that to this day. That really helped change that neighborhood. When we finished working on that project, when the developer sold a couple years ago, it opened the door to a lot of other real estate clients coming in and saying, “Hey, how do you take something like that and make it accessible for the general consumer or get them excited, or how do we get press like that?” It really was an area that I never thought we would get business in, but it's been challenging and fascinating and fun. I think we bring a different viewpoint, coming at it from the lifestyle perspective rather than the B2B perspective. Clients like that. We've been able to get press, so that's been good. ROB: I think we do want to hear those stories, these origin stories, these entrepreneurial stories, of something that we hope becomes something bigger. I think it's something that we lost. Food courts at one point actually were a place of innovation and entrepreneurship and of good stories. Chick-fil-A heavily grew in food courts, and I believe the Great American Cookie Company started in Atlanta, Georgia in a food court. We went through a season where those things didn't happen and there wasn't that entry point for an entrepreneurial restauranteur. And it's back. It's cool that you get to be a part of that story. Now, PR means a lot of things to a lot of people. Some people think about trying to get a software company an article in Forbes or Fortune, and some people think about this very encompassing suite of services, often on a local level. When you break down PR into the pieces and parts, what are the actual details and activities and day-to-day things you're doing for clients? TARA: It varies per client. A lot of them will come knowing that they need PR, but not exactly sure what we can do for them or what we bring to the table. A lot of times it's definitely, especially in our pitching, a little bit of an education as to what we do a little differently than most. But our day to day varies depending on if we've got an event that we're working on, or if it's a product or a restaurant opening. From press releases to pitching media outlets – and that's print, radio, TV, online, influencers now, which is a big taboo topic – pitching all of that, crisis management if there's an issue, management of the day-to-day messaging and storytelling for a client. We also do a lot with social media and digital marketing, whether that's us doing it for a client or working with another vendor that they have. We help create the storyline for the PR side, and where a lot of companies fail is that they're not weaving these things together. When that message is weaved together, whether that's through their email blasts or their social media platforms, it all works together. They may see something on social, then they see something in an email, then they see something in print or on TV, and you get that bigger picture storytelling. So, we do a lot of education with clients on how to figure out their cadence of messaging, but then also, how does that all work together? Are you telling the same story on every platform on the same day? No, let's not do that. Let's build it out. Let's weave in PR. Let's weave in quotes. Let's weave in whatever the reaction is from the general public, or high points. There's a lot of strategic work that we do now, which for me personally is my favorite thing. Starting an agency 25 years ago, I didn't know a lot when I started. You don't know what you don't know. As it's grown and PR has changed and morphed over the years, strategy has always stood out to me as the key need. Understanding a client's goals and what they need to get out of it and then mapping out a strategy – that's where we've had, knock on wood, our most successful campaigns and client work. I remember years ago, prior to starting 360, I worked at an independent record label, and we used to have to monitor how many calls we made, and we had to send out so much product. It was like you send out hundreds and hundreds of pieces of music and you just see what sticks. You can't possibly call thousands of journalists. I learned during that time that it worked for a short period of time, but then what really changed was, let's target. Maybe we send all this stuff out and whatever sticks, sticks, but let's target 10-15 outlets that we really want to tell the story to, and let's figure out that story for each outlet depending on what they cover. As we started to do that, we had big, successful pieces, and they were larger features. That was the turning point for me, going and working with a lot of clients and figuring out, “What's our strategy and how do we make more impact?” They always say less is more, and that definitely resonates a lot these days with PR. So, every day is different, but those are the base things that we work on. Some days there are some new things brought to the table, especially during a pandemic. [laughs] We've done a lot of new stuff that I was like, “Huh, never thought we'd work on that or do this kind of thing.” But for the most part, the overarching PR is a lot of writing, pitching, press releases, and storytelling. ROB: You can definitely see where that 360 degrees comes in for 360 Media. I think PR is often misunderstood to be shouting really loud, and you're talking about it so much more like a surround sound, where you get those different touchpoints that really reinforce the story and create that picture in your mind. You mentioned press releases, and I think press releases are perhaps one of the most misunderstood, maligned, and also misused tools that are out there. How do you think about and redeem the press release and help it to be the noble thing that it is, and also maybe how people may misuse them? TARA: That has become a very hot topic in our office. You go from one extreme to the other, where, as you said, people get confused by it. Not everything is worthy of a press release, but then again, there are plenty of times that a press release done well can cut through the clutter and gets picked up exactly how it's written, and that is a win for a client, and obviously a win for us. In this day and age, there's an amazing 24-hour news cycle and there's a lot of opportunity to get coverage, but there's also fewer journalists and people working at publications, so you've got to find that middle ground that you're not inundating them with useless information, but you're also providing enough that if they are short-staffed or they are one person covering five or six feeds, you have enough information there that they can pull content, don't necessarily have to deal with you or do an interview, and get a story up. Part of what we do is not only look at things and say, “Yes, that's worthy of a press release,” but we also look at what information we have. Do we have video? Do we have photography? Do we have quotes? Is there another way that this may be delivered to a journalist that would resonate more than just a press release? We really are now weighing out how that information goes out on our email list. Some days it is just a traditional press release, and other days it's a video that then links to a blog post that has more information, or it's an e-blast that is an invite to experience something online, especially now, since everybody's working remotely. There's a lot of different ways that we're doing it, and we continue to change it up and think, “How is this going to land and what's going to interest someone?” That's been really good. We get a lot of feedback from journalists who are like, “We're not getting the same old, same old from you, and that's really what stands out to us,” which I love. On the press release side, though, I will say if you write a great press release – and sometimes I get dinged from people and they're like “it's not AP style” and all of those things that are traditional. It's like, no, this stands out a little bit differently because we write in a little bit more of an editorial fashion. Some of our clients can be dinged as a little fluffy, so people are like, “This isn't really newsworthy. It's a little too fluff.” But we try to find that middle ground where it's like, here's an editorial piece for you that not only covers what's newsworthy on this end, but it can be cut and pasted and either put on a blog, or if an influencer is putting something up on their Instagram, they've got quotes they can use from the client, or a link to a Dropbox that's got photography or graphic assets that are done for Instagram, Facebook. We really try to make it very easy because everybody is so crazy busy, and that also stands out. Press releases are interesting. We just had a conversation this past week about a client. They wanted something in a press release, and I was like, “No, it's not going to land right. Let's do XYZ.” It stood out and it was different. There's a lot of stuff going on, obviously, with the pandemic and restaurants reopening. Because restaurants are reopening, everyone thinks, “My dining room is open. This is newsworthy.” Well, we're in a huge influx of dining rooms reopening, so what are you doing that's different compared to everybody else and you're not just opening? So we had to dig a little deeper, and we created the story, which then was like, “Okay, this is press release worthy because they're doing some stuff differently.” ROB: This is where maybe someone will say they're doing this different menu, they're doing this different format of service, they're doing this very unique thing in terms of how they're protecting people, or even some restaurants have been able to get the story out about how they are doing a mini-grocery. Is that the story? TARA: Yes. ROB: Instead of saying, “Hey, we're still open and doing takeout.” It's like, yes, so is everyone else who wants to save their restaurant. What are you doing that's different from just “yes, you can place an order on Uber Eats”? TARA: Yep. It's interesting because at the time when everybody was pivoting, that was newsworthy because some of these places weren't on Uber Eats or Grubhub or any of those services. But then it was like, okay, that's newsworthy for all of 5 minutes, but what are you doing differently for your team or onsite or the meals you're delivering? A prime example, Mission + Market in Buckhead is one of our clients, and for the first couple of weeks as they were pivoting, they were doing themed nights where it was like family meal and just different things. That was working very well for them, but what they ended up doing also was realizing that so many restaurants were closing at the time, they stepped up and on Thursdays were doing meals for people that had lost their jobs because of COVID. So, they not only covered the hospitality industry, but they were like, “Anyone that's lost their job, if you can show that you're no longer employed, you can order a meal through us.” They did it I want to say for 2 months and served over 1,500 people every Thursday. It was really incredible, and they got a lot of attention. Now, they didn't do this to get attention, but we had to put it out to say this is what they're doing so that people knew, and it ended up getting a lot of positive attention and other companies that wanted to support and give sponsorship to help cover the meals they were covering themselves. It turned into a much bigger thing. We got a lot of press out of it, even though that wasn't the game plan for it. It really made them stand out. ROB: For sure. There are a few folks I know in the service industry who just seem to have a natural knack for storytelling and baiting the hook and getting the right stories out there and getting coverage. How much of this thinking and getting these stories to land right is instinct, and how much of that do you think can be developed? And if it can be developed, how do you think about developing that proper mindset? TARA: I think some of it is instinct. I think also some of it is development. I think you're on the money there, because a lot of people – any client; it's not just in the hospitality industry – they're in there day to day, and they can't really see everything that is exciting or interesting, or maybe they're not up on the day to day of what's newsworthy or what might be resonating in pop culture. Meanwhile, they're doing something and it's like, oh my gosh, here's a local story that resonates with a national story or something that's trending nationally. When you start working with a client and start putting those ideas out there or talking to them or digging in a little deeper, all of a sudden you see their eyes light up and it's like a light bulb moment. They're like, “Wait a second, we're also doing XYZ.” It's like, “Yes, that is interesting and that's newsworthy.” That's been a really cool thing to watch as we continue to work with clients. Over time, you get in that groove, and they start seeing what you're seeing. They also start understanding how media works. Sometimes we'll have clients call and say, “I read this piece. We are doing this. Can you reach out to this writer and perhaps they would do something on us?” That's always cool, when we see clients grow into understanding what editorial options they have. Or “Hey, we're looking to do something for our anniversary. We don't want to do it exactly like everyone else. Here are the ideas we've come up with.” We come in and fine-tune that stuff. We also sometimes – I think this is one of the things that we're really known for amongst the clients we work with – just coming in and seeing things differently, and giving them a picture. They may come to the table and say, “Here's what we have. This is what we'd like to do,” and then we say, “Okay, this is great. Let's take this up a notch. How about this?” That's been really cool, to have clients that are open to collaboration and getting it to a place where it's like, “This will get you small press, but this will get you big press.” They're like, “Oh, okay!” That part is a lot of fun, especially when you tell them something is going to happen and then it does. [laughs] Which you can't guarantee, but when you're like, “This is big,” and then we take it out and either pitch it to someone exclusively or put it out en masse and they see the response they get, it's like, “Oh, okay, you guys were right.” That's a lot of fun. It's interesting, too – I had a new business pitch last week over Zoom, which obviously is new. A lot of calls and a lot of Zoom pitches. But in the midst of the pitch with this potential client, they were talking about some of the things they were doing, and immediately I was like, “Why don't you take this and you could do this and this and this?” The look on all of their faces – we were on Zoom and I love seeing it – they were like, “Oh my God, that was right in front of us.” I was like, “Yes, but you're in it. You can't see it.” That part was great. We had a follow-up call yesterday and they were like, “We took what you said. How about this, this, and this?” And we're not even on board yet. We're just now going through the proposal. It was funny. I was like, “Yes, that could all work.” That's an interesting – either you have to feed people or they get into it and get excited. ROB: And maybe the people I think have good instincts just have really good help, so who knows? TARA: [laughs] Both. ROB: [laughs] Tara, almost 25 years ago, when you started up 360, did you have any inkling that you were in it for the long haul? What was the formative driving force there? TARA: No, I really didn't. It's funny; a lot of times people ask, “Did you have a business plan? Did you map things out?” For the longest time, I was a little embarrassed. I was like, maybe I did something wrong? I didn't have a business plan, and I never mapped out, “Here's my 3- or 5-year, 10-year goal.” When I started 360, I had just left a record label, and the owners were married and they got a divorce. It was like you had to take sides, and the label crumbled. I jumped ship with the female side of the business because she was my day-to-day, and she started another company and I worked there for a little bit. In the midst of that, she ended up taking another job. There were four of us that had gone with her. I started to reach out and do résumés and call people and all these things, and it just never went anywhere. I had interned with a company called Concert Southern that is now the Live Nation Atlanta office back in the day, and I was there when they started Music Midtown. I was an intern on Music Midtown the first year, and then they called and were like, “Why don't you put in a proposal? We need a PR person, and you know this event.” I was like, “What?” [laughs] I put like a 27-page proposal together. I'd never done one before. I put it in. This was Year 3 of the festival. I'd been an intern on the first one, volunteered on the second one on the PR communications side, and then put in a proposal for Year 3. It ended up becoming my first client, but I didn't know it at the time. It was more, “Sure, I'll do this. This is a 6-month gig. This will pay me some money.” I had to move back in with my parents right after college for a little while during this time because I didn't have a job. It was kind of like, “Okay, let's do this.” Then I started to get other business. Then it was time for Music Midtown again. So, 3 years into it, I was like, maybe I really need to get a business license and do some things rather than this freelance stuff. I ended up getting my first employee and built it from there. Sitting here now and thinking about it being 25 years later, there's so many things that happened over time – the recession and things that we got hit with – and to still be here is mind-blowing to me on a lot of levels. I didn't have a business degree, and I got a ‘D' in PR in college. It was not what I wanted to do. [laughs] It's like, you put your mind to something and you can do anything. Sometimes when people ask me about a business plan, I say, had I done that, I probably would have failed because I would have been one of those that had to stick to the business plan. Over the 25 years, we've morphed and we've opened the door to other types of clients. Like I mentioned earlier with commercial real estate, I would have never, ever opened the door to that. But it rolled in in a very interesting way, and it was like, “Okay, let's go down this road.” That's I think kept us going. Honestly, even in this pandemic, probably 80% of our clients have put us on hold because a lot were restaurants and entertainment and events. Our hotel, real estate, design clients are all still booming, so that's been interesting. Had we not had that, we would probably be in a little bit of a different spot right now. But our restaurants are coming back and things are changing. I've learned a lot over the last 25 years. But no, I would've never guessed that we'd be here. Ever. ROB: You mentioned learning some things over the course of the business. What are some things you've learned along the way that you might do differently if you were starting anew? TARA: It's interesting. I was asked that question one other time, a couple years ago, and I had a very different answer. I think for me, there's not a lot that I would do differently. I probably would learn to go with my gut, my intuition. I wish I had learned to do that sooner. I've always had a strong gut reaction and intuition, but sometimes it's like, “That doesn't make sense right now. Why are you thinking that?” I didn't fully always embrace it. So I would probably do that sooner. I also would not let people – you bend for clients that might be struggling or things that are happening, and I have bent probably one too many times for people who owed me money. I let it get a little too far down the road, and then it becomes harder to collect. I've learned that a lot more in the last 4 years of business. You get to a place where you're doing well, and it's like, “Oh, we can let someone slide for a little bit while they're struggling,” and then it just ends up catching up. We got dinged a little too much the last couple of years. So, I probably wouldn't let the debt get too big. I've learned a lesson there. I also probably – there were two times in my entire career that I took clients for money, because it was big, but my gut said “these aren't right for you or the firm.” Again, just listening to my gut. I would do that much sooner. But I think also, in what would you not do/what would you do, as entrepreneurs, when you have no fear in the beginning because you don't know what you don't know and then you go through an experience and you're like, “Ugh, been there, done that. I'm not doing that again” – I think it's important as an entrepreneur to really be open and let things flow in and assess them, and not be closed off to things. It really, truly is how I've grown 360. Putting out there, “Hey, I'm interested in more events or festivals” or whatever it is, always, doors open. Being afraid is fine, but you can take a pivot, you can take a next step, and it does work out. I think you just have to control your fear and be excited about it. I think that's important. ROB: That's all very practical, and I appreciate that. I also had some wounds on the not collecting money quick enough train. It's never, ever fun, because you realize quickly that when someone is going out of business, there's just really not going to be money for you, for the most part. TARA: [laughs] That is a lesson to learn. ROB: You think about “Oh, bankruptcy, you split it up” – no, no. There's just no money. Good luck. [laughs] TARA: Yeah. Also, being diligent. I will say this: I have a former client that has owed me money since 2017, and I got a check last week. In a pandemic, I'm getting paid. I'm like, okay, this is the universe looking out for me. But it was being diligent and not just letting it go. I wouldn't have done that before. I just would've been like, “It's just a write-off. Let's move on.” But sometimes good things happen. ROB: Yeah, don't write it off until you've asked a few times, at least, right? TARA: Right. [laughs] Totally. ROB: Excellent. Tara, when people want to find you and find 360, where should they look for you? TARA: We have a website, 360media.net. We are also on Instagram under the same thing, 360 Media, Inc (@360mediainc). We also are the publishers – I didn't even mention this – of the Atlanta 100. The Atlanta 100 is a weekly newsletter that we do, and there's a website, theatlanta100.com. It's a weekly newsletter that goes out every Thursday or Friday with 12 stories about Atlanta in 100 words. We've been the publishers of that for the last 2 years. There's a lot of not only stuff about Atlanta, but also our clients as well. ROB: Excellent. Sounds solidly played. We'll get all of that in the show notes. Thank you so much for coming on, Tara. It's been a pleasure. Again, maybe someday we can do an event in person. TARA: I know, I would love that. It was good to hear that you're here. Thank you so much for having me. This has been a lot of fun. ROB: Thank you. Bye bye. TARA: Bye. ROB: Thank you for listening. The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast is presented by Converge. Converge helps digital marketing agencies and brands automate their reporting so they can be more profitable, accurate, and responsive. To learn more about how Converge can automate your marketing reporting, email info@convergehq.com, or visit us on the web at convergehq.com.

About this episode This week's featured founder is Michael Coles, founder of The Great American Cookie Company. Michael will share his journey through family hardship and financial ruin, his bankruptcy, and a motorcycle crash that almost destroyed his life. He then takes us through how he started a cookie business, one which would go on to be one of the most successful cookie brands in the country. Due to the Coronavirus, Michael and I recorded this episode remotely, but I felt like I was sitting right there with him as he walked me through all the various challenges he had to overcome to get to where he is today. We are all fortunate to learn from someone that has (for decades) continued to step up to adversity and push against it. This is Michael Coles' startup story. In this episode, you'll hear How at the age of 10, his family lost their home and watched his dad recover from bankruptcy. His first venture was raking leaves. He shared how this experience taught him about monopolies and franchising. He shared fondly about his first mentor, Irving Settler, who owned a department store where Michael worked. Why and how, in his Senior year, he moved to Massachusetts to live with his brother and focus on school. After high school, Michael got a job as a sales representative for a clothing company instead of going the traditional route of college. Grappling with the desire to start his own business, he decided to start a retail company that eventually went bankrupt. He went back to work as a sales rep for a clothing manufacturer. And ultimately, he would go on to launch a clothing company of his own. A trip to the mall to buy snacks for clients introduced Michael to the concept of 'single-food' stores. He immediately bought ingredients to make cookies, and a scale, so he could try to figure out the cost ratio. How a call to a friend to buy out his share of the clothing company would lead to the start of the Great American Cookie Company. Due to lack of oven mitts, their opening day ended with a fire and no cookies to hand out to customers. Six weeks after starting the cookie company, a motorcycle accident nearly took Michael's life. Michael shared his journey openly and how his rehabilitation led him to set three world records for coast-to-coast bike rides. Michael credits his experience with manufacturing and sales to his success. He leaves listeners and entrepreneurs with some sound advice. Resources from this episode Time to Get Tough! How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life (https://amzn.to/3fXFwEd) Michael Coles on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-coles-24750b13/) Great American Cookie Company (https://www.greatamericancookies.com/) The Startup Story Inner Circle: https://www.thestartupstory.co/vip The Startup Story on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thestartupstory The Startup Story is now on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/jamesmckinney The Startup Story on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thestartupstory Share the podcast The Startup Story community has been so incredible sharing our podcast with others, and we thank you! We do have more stories to tell and more people to reach. There are three ways you can help. First, the most powerful way you can support this podcast is by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Second, follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and be sure to share your favorite Startup Story episodes with your friends and on social media. Tag or mention @thestartupstory.co so we can give you a virtual high five and a thank you! Lastly, share the podcast on LinkedIn. The Startup Story podcast is for entrepreneurs. Don't underestimate the power of sharing on LinkedIn so other entrepreneurs can discover us. With your support, we hope to further our reach in encouraging and inspiring the founders of today and tomorrow. Thank you! EPISODE CREDITS If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Danny Ozment. He helps thought leaders, influencers, executives, HR professionals, recruiters, lawyers, realtors, bloggers, and authors create, launch, and produce podcasts that grow their business and impact the world. Contact him today at https://emeraldcitypro.com/startupstory

In this week's episode of the Jackson Hole Connection, Stephan visits with Michael Coles. Michael is an entrepreneur, father, author, avid volunteer, co-founder and former CEO of the Great American Cookie Company, former CEO of Caribou Coffee, and has set two transcontinental cycling records. Michael and his family fell in love with Jackson Hole after spending one night in 1974 on a family road trip to the national parks. One night was enough to come back in the 80s to purchase a home in the valley. In this episode, Stephan and Michael talk about overcoming obstacles in childhood, starting and operating businesses, learning from mistakes, giving back and of course….cookie cake. Find Michael Coles book at local book stores in Jackson and on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Time-Get-Tough-Cookies-Business/dp/0820354627 (Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life) Do you enjoy The Jackson Hole Connection? Please subscribe, rate and review our podcast wherever you listen. Tune in every Thursday for a new episode of The Jackson Hole Connection. This week's sponsor is https://www.theliquorstorejacksonhole.com (The Liquor Store of Jackson Hole). Want to be a guest on The Jackson Hole Connection? Email us at connect@thejacksonholeconnection.com Music in this episode is provided by Luke Taylor. The Jackson Hole Connection is edited byhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelmoeri ( Michael Moeri). Website and social media support byhttp://hiretana.com/ ( Tana Hoffman).

Today is near and dear to me – not only did I work in a cookie store for 2 years while in high school -- but I have made many a business deal sitting across a café table at Caribou Coffee. The moon and stars aligned today,  Michael J. Coles, co-founder of Great American Cookie Company and former Chairman and CEO of Caribou Coffee, explores his remarkable journey in business, sports and politics in his new book, Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business in Life. Here to talk success and failures in business and life welcome Michael to the Nice Guys on Business.   Connect with Michael J. Coles: Website: www.michaelcoles.com   Nice Sponsors: Get your free Ultimate Market Research Checklist here    Get your free E-Book 5 Ways to Make Money Podcasting at www.Turnkeypodcasting.com/gift   Reach The Nice Guys Here: Doug- @DJDoug Strickland- @NiceGuyonBiz   Nice Links: Subscribe to the Podcast Niceguysonbusiness.com TurnkeyPodcast.com - You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. Podcast Production, Concept to Launch   Book Doug and/or Strick as a speaker at your upcoming event. Amazon #1 Best selling book Nice Guys Finish First. Doug's Business Building Bootcamp (10 Module Course)   Nice Survey: Take our short survey so The Nice Guys know what you like.     Partner Links: Amazon.com: Click before buying anything. Help support the podcast. Acuity Scheduling: Stop wasting time going back and forth scheduling appointments   No time to get to this, but you can read the blog here: 12 worries that every entrepreneur has   Promise Statement: To provide an experience that is entertaining and adds value to your life.   Never underestimate the Power of Nice.  

Today is near and dear to me – not only did I work in a cookie store for 2 years while in high school -- but I have made many a business deal sitting across a café table at Caribou Coffee. The moon and stars aligned today,  Michael J. Coles, co-founder of Great American Cookie Company and former Chairman and CEO of Caribou Coffee, explores his remarkable journey in business, sports and politics in his new book, Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business in Life. Here to talk success and failures in business and life welcome Michael to the Nice Guys on Business.   Connect with Michael J. Coles: Website: www.michaelcoles.com   Nice Sponsors: Get your free Ultimate Market Research Checklist here    Get your free E-Book 5 Ways to Make Money Podcasting at www.Turnkeypodcasting.com/gift   Reach The Nice Guys Here: Doug- @DJDoug Strickland- @NiceGuyonBiz   Nice Links: Subscribe to the Podcast Niceguysonbusiness.com TurnkeyPodcast.com - You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. Podcast Production, Concept to Launch   Book Doug and/or Strick as a speaker at your upcoming event. Amazon #1 Best selling book Nice Guys Finish First. Doug's Business Building Bootcamp (10 Module Course)   Nice Survey: Take our short survey so The Nice Guys know what you like.     Partner Links: Amazon.com: Click before buying anything. Help support the podcast. Acuity Scheduling: Stop wasting time going back and forth scheduling appointments   No time to get to this, but you can read the blog here: 12 worries that every entrepreneur has   Promise Statement: To provide an experience that is entertaining and adds value to your life.   Never underestimate the Power of Nice.  

Michael Coles is a successful entrepreneur, investor, advisor and community leader.  He co-founded The Great American Cookie Company and grew it into the largest franchisor of cookie stores with 350 locations and sales of over $100 million when he sold the company.  He was also the CEO of Caribou Coffee which became a publicly traded company.  He is a big supporter of Kennesaw State University, whose business program is fittingly named the Michael J Coles College of Business.