Colombia, Shakira, the Presidents and the missing picture

About six months ago I received an email from something called "CEO's Summit of the Americas." Attached was a letter from Juan Manuel Santos, president of the Republic of Colombia. My reaction was, "Yeah, right. The Colombian president doesn't have enough problems to solve and decided to send me a letter."

I receive about 200 emails a day, and there's always some spam that makes it through the filter and into my inbox. But the email didn't look 100-percent spam, so I kept it. Some weeks later I received an original letter from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) with the invitation in printed format. Everything looked legitimate, and one week later I received the call from the Colombian embassy. The event website had a video of President Santos inviting 250 business people from the Americas to be part of a CEO's Summit that would take place at the same time as the Presidents' Summit of the Americas in Cartagena, Colombia, April 12-14. So I was one of the lucky two Ticos who were invited.
But why has Colombia become important for us? Well, last February we won two bids to operate gift shops in the new El Dorado Airport Terminal in Bogota, Colombia. This building will be the largest Latin American airport terminal so far. It's scheduled to open this coming August. I have been traveling to Bogota, and our team has been to many regions in Colombia searching for handcrafts, coffee and chocolate. A team of six people toured the country last March for a week as part of the scouting trip — our method of discovering what a new Britt country has to offer to visitors — to gather information to develop products, souvenirs, T-shirts, etc.
I have met three times with the Colombian Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism in San Jose, Bogota, and Cartagena, and have met key business people from that beautiful country. Britt was in El Tiempo, an important newspaper of Colombia, three times in the same week when the news of the new airport concessions broke out. We have received hundreds of emails from suppliers and people offering their services to us. And yes, we have already tasted some of the best coffees from the most representative regions of Colombia. In a future newsletter I will try to describe them for you, they will be part of our collection of Café Britt coffees from Colombia.

So, there I was. In addition to the 250 business people from the Americas, the government picked about 100 key Colombian business people to attend the Summit. We heard presentations from CEO's from global companies, like Marriott and Pepsico, who have a strong presence in the region. Other speakers included representatives from NGO's like "Un techo para mi país" (A Roof for My Country), a non-profit organization with presence in 20 countries in Latin America that last year listed 125,000 volunteers who helped build houses for the poor. Even Shakira, the famous song-writer, singer and global pop star, spoke to us. Shakira has been helping poor children for 20 years already, building care centers for young children in many countries. She spoke to an auditorium filled with some of the most influential business people in Latin America, and called for more decisive action. She preached the philanthro-capitalism concepts as practiced by Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, who have each committed to give half of their wealth to non-profits. Shakira supported her talk with the concept of Shared Value, as proposed by Harvard's Michael Porter. She made an impression, certainly a strong one.

I hadn't realized that most of the presidents would come to speak to us. I enjoyed Mexican President Felipe Calderon's presentation. He was funny, spontaneous, and delivered a no-nonsense pro-commerce presentation that was worthy of a high-level economist. With figures, graphs and unusually simple terms, he showed that our countries need more business, that the government does not create wealth, and that we need to work to improve the competitiveness of the companies operating throughout Latin America.  We also heard U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton deliver an insightful presentation on connectivity in Latin America, and how the U.S. will try to help connect our cities and improve conditions for marginal communities. We had Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla, who impressed the auditorium according to several people from different countries, by simply explaining Costa Rican history. It looks like our recipe of no-army, a focus on education, universal health care, and care for the environment, is really powerful and needed these days. That evening we went to the historic Castillo de San Felipe, Cartagena's signature colonial castle within the walled city. And, yes, we had dinner with the 20+ presidents (about 1,000 people total), including President Barak Obama, and listened to traditionally vibrant vallenato music. Everyone was relaxed. The organization throughout the conference was perfect. Colombians are the best hosts in the world. They truly make you feel at home. On the second day things looked different at the Hilton, where the conference took place. This time the security checks were carried out by Americans, and you could "feel" the security level going up to the sky. You felt scanned, videotaped, controlled. The 500-seat room was full. Hurried people in dark suits invaded the mostly white guayabera/linen dressed business people. The dress code was informal. The guayabera shirts are traditional in many parts of Latin America.   And there they were. We had President Dilma Rousseff from Brazil, now the 6th economy in the world and #1 in Latin America, President Santos from Colombia, and U.S. President Obama. First, President Rousseff talked in her paused, strong, easy-to-understand Portuguese about the economy.

She blamed "some" developed countries for creating a "Monetary Tsunami" — by printing money like crazy — that was affecting the competitiveness of Brazil and other emerging economies by causing their currencies to appreciate in value, thus making their exports more expensive. President Obama looked serious and a bit uncomfortable, maybe because President Rousseff was right. She was right in her reasoning, and I was positively surprised she spoke with a good handle of economic and business concepts.   President Santos started with an ice-breaking joke that had secondary effects. He said he was in the midst of "two titans," and looked first to his right at Mrs. Rousseff, and then turned left to make eye contact with Mr. Obama, who didn't laugh. He talked about the drug issue. One of the big issues at the presidential conference was a discussion about drug legalization, which the U.S. opposes strongly. President Santos spoke about analyzing the topic, because what we've done for the last 40 years has created many dead people and an increasing drug trade. He was diplomatic toward the U.S., saying that maybe legalizing the drug trade is not the answer, but calling for a serious analysis of the current situation, and the harm that mainly U.S.-based demand is causing throughout Latin America.  The secondary effect of President Santos intervention, in my opinion, was that somehow in the auditorium and the conference, the U.S. looked about the same as Brazil in terms of importance. And I think Mr. Obama didn't like that sense of being at the same level as Brazil.  Then it was President Obama's turn. I have to say he has a great personality, but I think he felt somewhat uncomfortable. I was eagerly expecting some of his jokes. He just made one. He said that he was tired of going to conferences around the world, especially in Latin America, where the U.S. is to blame for all that is wrong in those places. He made a facial expression as if taking offense, but in a friendly, almost funny way. People laughed. But that was it. He basically responded. He didn't propose. He said, "We are mindful of our responsibilities." He gave a definite "No" to legalizing drugs, and not much more. Maybe my level of expectation was too high. Or the U.S. doesn't have a coherent and decisive focus towards Latin America.

In my opinion, Colombia was the big winner at the conference. Colombia looked positive, competent, progressive, and with execution ability. This is a country with warm people, a great culture, the best music, good food and great coffee!! I heard the event cost them $20 million U.S. dollars, and Cartagena looked at its best.  There were no security incidents, and all this will help boost tourism. The day I was leaving Colombia and going to Brazil, I had some time to relax. I was at a beach resort and went jogging along the beach. Then I saw a group of local people playing soccer. For someone that grew up playing soccer (not much else to do after school), soccer at the beach is one of the best things in life. So I stopped for a second to watch the match. Six, 10-to-20-year-old kids, shirtless, were playing against a group of shirted older guys. I was lucky enough to get invited to play, and since I was shirtless, I played with the sun-bathed, brown-skinned athletic kids. No one asked me what I was doing there. I just crossed a couple of words, took off my running shoes and spoke the universal language of soccer. Shirtless, shoeless, I loved it! I didn't score but we won. Without my iPad I could not take a picture, but believe me, from the whole trip, if I were able to repeat one activity, it would be that one. The warmth and hospitality of Colombians is incredible. With them, this country will succeed!!

COSTA RICA - PURA VIDA -- Qué nos falta?.

Segunda de dos partes -- 14 de Febrero, 2012

En el mes de Diciembre les compartí mi punto de vista alrededor de algunos valores que tenemos en Costa Rica sobre los que pienso debe basarse la estrategia del país.

Mencioné tres temas:

1.      El valor del respeto a la ecología

2.      El valor de ser pacifistas

3.      El valor de ser demócratas y abiertos a la gente

Este país aún tiene muchos temas pendientes en los que debe enfocarse para alcanzar un desarrollo económico, social y ecológico como el que los costarricenses anhelamos.

Infraestructura para ser competitivos

A pesar de que en una reciente encuesta mundial sobre “Marca País”, Costa Rica aparece en primer lugar entre los países de Latinoamérica, en el tema de infraestructura, especialmente en puertos marítimos y carreteras, Costa Rica aparece normalmente en los últimos lugares de la tabla. Hasta hace pocos años los huecos en las calles llamaban la atención de los turistas. En una ocasión mientras yo manejaba mi auto con un visitante japonés, pasamos por una calle con tantos huecos que sentí que de algún modo debía disculparme ante mi invitado japonés, y le dije que en Costa Rica el gobierno no había encontrado la clave para mantener bien las carreteras, a lo que él me dijo que no me preocupara, que eso se solucionaría en poco tiempo, que esa fue la experiencia en Japón. Cuando pregunté que en qué época las calles japonesas estuvieron en tan mal estado él me respondió: “después de la segunda guerra mundial”…

La falta de infraestructura tiene su principal causa en la incapacidad del gobierno de construir y operar obras de gran magnitud, el país está apenas adquiriendo el conocimiento para licitar y manejar obras dadas en concesión a operadores privados, ya los dos aeropuertos internacionales del país están operando exitosamente bajo este modelo, y este camino ha resultado exitoso en otros países de la región.

Educación para la Innovación

Recientemente los estudiantes de secundaria de Costa Rica participaron en una competencia mundial llamada PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment), organizada por los países de la OCDE para medir las habilidades de los estudiantes de 15 años en lectura, ciencias y matemáticas. Ya existen muchos países de Latinoamérica que también participan. Los resultados para Costa Rica, fueron buenos si nos comparamos con países latinoamericanos, pues los estudiantes ticos quedaron segundos en matemática y ciencias, y cuartos en lectura, la mala noticia es que estos resultados están por debajo del promedio de los países desarrollados de la OCDE. Más allá de estos resultados, necesitamos que nuestros estudiantes aprendan a aprender, que las clases en la escuela estimulen su curiosidad y su inventiva para que una vez adultos puedan desarrollar todo su potencial creativo.

Salud universal de calidad

Sólo una pequeña nota sobre salud. En Costa Rica existe la seguridad social universal y esto permite al 100 por ciento de la población tener acceso a los servicios de salud. La esperanza de vida del costarricense es de 78.8 años, comparable con países desarrollados. Sin embargo el reto es poder mantener la calidad de los servicios con recursos limitados.

Apoyo internacional en seguridad

Como comenté en la columna anterior, la principal fuente de inseguridad en Costa Rica proviene de las bandas internacionales que trafican la droga que se produce en Suramérica y se consume en Norteamérica. Para combatir a estas mafias internacionales se requiere de un esfuerzo coordinado entre todos los países. Aunque se han hecho algunos esfuerzos, estos no se equiparan a la magnitud del problema.

Liderazgo que exprese esta visión

Finalmente, creo que esta es la carencia principal para que este pequeño país se desarrolle. Lamentablemente nuestro sistema político no incentiva a que la mejor gente acepte puestos de liderazgo altos en la función pública. Las reglas para garantizar un manejo ágil del país, algo muy necesario en medio de un mundo tan cambiante,  no existen hoy en día. Padecemos de un exceso de reglas burocráticas, que impiden que los gobiernos ejecuten sus planes estratégicos.

El país requiere de líderes que puedan convencer con la palabra, delinear claramente la visión de país que la gran mayoría de costarricenses anhelan, y ganarse el respeto para cambiar aquellas reglas obsoletas que sólo frenan el avance del país.

Espero que mis tres hijos, y los nietos que vendrán, puedan vivir en un país más sostenible en el ámbito no sólo económico, sino social y ambiental, y que la ruta que Costa Rica decidió tomar, pueda iluminar a otros países que también han comprendido que la ruta de la paz y el equilibrio ambiental no son opcionales.

Hasta la próxima, pura vida !

Pablo.

¿Preguntas? ¿Comentarios? Escríbame a pablo@cafebritt.com

COSTA RICA - PURA VIDA Hacia un modelo de país con liderazgo.

Primera de dos partes--  Diciembre, 2011

Hace pocos días hablé de Costa Rica en un panel llamado Amcham Competitiveness Summit, una conferencia de alto nivel sobre la competitividad de este país. Me gustaría compartir con Uds. algo de lo que dije, y que aquellos de Uds. que han visitado Costa Rica y conocen el país de primera mano me escriban para ver si lo que voy a mencionar tiene sentido. Y si Ud. no ha visitado Costa Rica, le recomiendo que lo haga y espero que este artículo le ayude a formar su opinión de este pequeño y lindo país.

Mi contribución giró en torno a los valores que deberían sustentar el modelo de desarrollo económico “tico”.

1.      El valor del respeto a la ecología

Costa Rica debe continuar su desarrollo en torno al respecto por el medio ambiente. Recientemente el país detuvo una concesión para la explotación de una mina de oro a cielo abierto. El Tribunal Constitucional de Costa Rica determinó que la empresa minera no obtuvo todos sus permisos usando criterios técnicos válidos. Pero este fue sólo el final de una serie de cuestionamientos y protestas que se dieron en todo el país debido a que el lugar donde se iba a realizar esta explotación minera es un bosque tropical húmedo con gran biodiversidad. El país celebró la cancelación de esta concesión como un gran logro en favor del medio ambiente. Este tipo de cosas pasan en muy pocos lugares del planeta, y uno de ellos es Costa Rica. El respeto por el medio ambiente y la “ética ecológica” que Costa Rica ha desarrollado son testimonio para el mundo, y son un activo con que el mundo cuenta. Este pequeño país ha logrado proteger en parques nacionales y otras formas de protección de la biodiversidad, aproximadamente un tercio de su territorio.  El modelo llamado “Pago por Servicios Ambientales” mediante el cual los agentes privados se comprometen a conservar bosques para que no sean explotados, ha sido reconocido mundialmente.

2. El valor de ser pacifistas

Hace 63 años Costa Rica abolió el ejército. Este hecho no ocurrió en una región tranquila donde no era necesario defender al país, ocurrió en Centroamérica, que forma parte de Latinoamérica, en momentos en que la democracia era la excepción en la región. En estos 63 años Costa Rica ha visto a sus vecinos envueltos en guerras, hemos tenido dictadores a ambos lados de nuestras fronteras, y al día de hoy la zona Norte de Centroamérica es una de las regiones más violentas del mundo. Pero precisamente Costa Rica, en medio de tanta convulsión, dijo al mundo que prefería vivir sin un ejército, y propuso un modelo de defensa de su país y sus ciudadanos

basado en la palabra, en la argumentación, en los acuerdos multilaterales, en la civilización, y no en la guerra.

Hoy en día, los principales retos del país en materia de garantizar la seguridad están comprometidos por el rentable tránsito de las drogas que se producen en Suramérica y se consumen en Norteamérica. Estas redes han vulnerado la seguridad de muchos países de la región, y aunque Costa Rica continúa siendo el país más seguro de Centroamérica, se necesita el apoyo de la comunidad internacional para luchar contra un fenómeno que atrae a las mafias transnacionales. En medio de tantos problemas regionales, los niños ticos aprenden en la escuela que es mejor estudiar que hacer la guerra, que la solución está en las  palabras y no en las armas. Les confieso que este aspecto de Costa Rica es lo que más satisfacción me causa de mi país. Costa Rica puede predicar la paz al mundo, porque ha apostado su existencia como país independiente en ella.

3. El valor de ser demócratas y abiertos a la gente

En Costa Rica no hubo grandes riquezas minerales ni grandes cantidades de población indígena, de manera que los conquistadores españoles más ambiciosos nunca se establecieron en estas tierras. Los españoles que decidieron habitar Costa Rica, tuvieron que trabajar junto a sus familias, y labrar la tierra ellos mismos. Así, durante la colonia, Costa Rica era la provincia más pobre y alejada de Centroamérica (la capital era Guatemala, y Panamá pertenecía a Colombia en Suramérica).

Esto creó un pueblo abierto a los extranjeros, inmigrantes y visitantes. El turismo es sólo la última etapa de una historia de apertura de los ticos hacia los visitantes. Incluso, en los últimos 30 años el país recibió inmigrantes principalmente nicaragüenses que hoy suman entre un 12% y un 18% de la población de Costa Rica. Los ticos nos quedamos espantados cuando en las noticias se muestran barcos de africanos en condiciones infrahumanas a los cuales no se les permite desembarcar en Europa porque la inmigración se ve como un mal que hay que evitar a toda costa. Costa Rica es diferente, es un país abierto y también puede predicar sobre tolerancia con el ejemplo.

Recientemente según una encuesta mundial de “marca país”, Costa Rica sale en primer lugar como el país de Latinoamérica con la mejor marca país, por encima de países tan grandes como Brasil y México, y de lugares con mayor crecimiento económico como Chile y Panamá. Además, según varias encuestas de “felicidad”, los costarricenses encabezan la lista como el “país más feliz del mundo”.  Sin embargo, Costa Rica enfrenta retos crecientes y en una próxima columna analizaré estos retos, y hablaré sobre otros valores que considero son vitales para sustentar un modelo de desarrollo único en el mundo, el modelo “Pura Vida”.

Les deseo una época de navidad llena de bendiciones, y un año nuevo muy próspero.

Hasta entonces,

Pablo.

The value of non conformity !

I recently chatted with a group of students and business people in Honduras about how Britt has managed to build a company using gourmet coffee and chocolate as our raw materials. I described how we took these products — the very same products found in Honduras — and transformed them into fine, finished gourmet goods under the Britt brand, and how we did it all from Central America. After many years of hard work, these products are highly valued by consumers of many cultures and in many countries. We hoped our actions would encourage young people to set high goals for themselves and never settle for conventional wisdom — the analysis of what won't work without a vision of what could be.



I thought that a message of optimism, based on our own real experience at Britt in overcoming obstacles, could be valuable in a country like Honduras. More than half the population there lives below the poverty level. Recent years have been filled with violence and political strife, and as a result young entrepreneurs find it hard to arrange financing for their projects. Honduran students and business people are today faced with many of the same limitations that we experienced at Britt in the 1990s, when we were just getting started turning our dreams into realities.
I shared four qualities that I think were vital for us while we were building our Company:

We approached business with a certain degree of rebelliousness and irreverence. When we were getting started in Costa Rica it was illegal to sell export–quality coffee within the country. At the time, a sort of "Berlin Wall" separated export-quality coffee from "domestic-consumption coffee". The quality of this "domestic-consumption coffee" was so horrible that it was dyed a greenish-blue color to ensure it would never be sold abroad. We challenged the authorities and succeeded in changing the rules so Costa Ricans could drink the same premium coffee enjoyed by coffee lovers around the world – without leaving our country. This is only one example, but I can assure you, based on personal experience, that whenever you have a truly innovative idea, the "experts" will most certainly oppose it. The most common reason they'll give you is that it won't work because no one's ever done it before.

We let our authenticity do the talking. We've never pretended to be something we're not. Our marketing has always remained true to our products' true characteristics. I always tell new coworkers in our Britt Shops that an advantage of working for Britt is that we'll never ask them to embellish the qualities of anything we sell. All we ask is that they study each product's characteristics, sample the edible products and learn where the product comes from and its history. Our slogan, "From the plantation to your cup" reflects this desire to be familiar with the whole process and what happens at each of its steps. We live in a globalized world, but we human beings still enjoy our cultural differences and the unique products that give each of our countries their own "sense of place." Britt operates in many countries. Much of our work focuses on highlighting the unique and authentic elements of each culture.

We've held a consistent market position over time. It's based on our obsession with quality. Anyone who has enjoyed our products over the years knows what I'm talking about. At Britt, we expect the same quality that is found in our products to extend to our service. That brings me to my next point.

We've made a real effort to show good taste in everything we do. When we exceed our customers' expectations with our personalized service, attractive products and pleasant, authentic shopping atmosphere, we achieve the "Wow! Factor" we're looking for. Achieving a Wow! Factor based on good taste is the epitome. It's the best we can do. Curiously, achieving that level of service doesn't mean we're perfect or that we never make mistakes. We contribute to the Wow! Factor even more when we take great care to resolve a customer complaint and follow up by asking if there's anything else we can do. We foster customer loyalty by admitting when we make mistakes and working hard to quickly find a solution.

Companies are made up of people. That's the bottom line. Great companies are built on people who challenge conformity, who are authentic and of sound character. If we take all of that and add an element of good taste, we're well on our way to building not only a good company, but a great one. 

Cafe Britt at your service,

 

Britt in the Dominican Republic: A New Frontier

I was in the Dominican Republic earlier this month to watch the “birth” of our newest arrivals – six new stores in three airports. The DR, which shares half the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, is the Caribbean’s largest tourism destination. Our grand openings were a great success!
Britt Shop is now part of the mix in the International Airport of the Americas in the capital city of Santo Domingo and in the airports of Samaná, and Puerto Plata, two tourism hot spots.

Our start-up team included coworkers from Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru and Chile. Just seeing the impression they made on their new Dominican counterparts affirmed for me what a privilege it is to lead such a competent, creative, committed and ethical group of people.
Every time I speak with someone new at Britt, I go away with the feeling that we’re doing something very right. It’s gratifying to see young people in our home country drawn to Britt for its reputation, for the quality of our gourmet coffee and chocolates, for the innovation that characterizes our gift shops, and for the authenticity of our actions. This is the case because we love our jobs! But to go to another country and see people of another culture, even one as joyful, fun and marvelously friendly as the Dominican culture, so impressed with the caliber of our coworkers and so immersed in the “Britt Enthusiasm”– it’s one of the things I like best about my job.
That’s when a job stops being a job and becomes an adventure. It becomes a cultural awakening through the life stories of artisans and workers. It’s present in variations of the Spanish language, when familiar words and phrases have meanings that are totally different from the way they are used in my own country. The adventure extends to exquisite chocolates, traditional sweets, Latin music that includes merengue, bachata, salsa and other Caribbean rhythms. After a “job” like this, my life becomes richer.

And that’s what I want to share with you, faithful customers. You’re the ones who visit our website: www.cafebritt.com, and experience the quality of our customer service, coffee and chocolates. That’s why I want you to know about another side of Britt culture – the adventurous side. It’s what motivates us to venture into other countries to open gift shops and share the same values that you receive from us on your doorsteps, together with your orders of gourmet coffee and chocolates. It’s an enterprising, service culture that encourages everyone to give the best of him or herself for the common good.
A lot of turbulence is shaking the world right now. The markets and prices are intensely volatile amid financial crisis and global uncertainty. We’re immersed in this tumultuous climate, yet we keep growing thanks to the honest, arduous and ceaseless efforts of a group of people who view their jobs as an opportunity to create, support, change and improve. Their aspirations raise the spirit and foster a very unique business culture that inspires the new employees as they become part of the Britt family.
Together we work to improve our surroundings and contribute to society. I’m convinced that we’re contributing greatly to everyone who receives our products and services or who is otherwise involved with our organization. Because Britt is a young, modern and agile company that isn’t deterred by obstacles. With enthusiasm and teamwork, we create projects that improve the economies of our countries. Today, we’re very happy to say that that includes the Dominican Republic. Could that be part of what “Social Responsibility” is all about?
Saludos cordiales,
Pablo

Questions? Comments?

Toward an earth-friendlier ethic

I had the chance June 16 to speak about our Go Green Britt approach at the Globe Conference Costa Rica 2011 (http://costarica.globeseries.com). For about 20 years now, these conferences have been bringing business leaders together with government officials to talk about the environment. This time around, the conference focused on how to move more quickly toward a low-carbon economy. I took part in a panel that discussed how companies can help the economies of our countries become more environmentally friendly.

I described for the group some of the many things we do at Britt to foster a healthy environment, especially during the month of June, when we celebrate Environment Month. We encourage our suppliers and customers to get involved in our efforts. For example, at the Central Pacific beach community of Manuel Antonio, many of our customers are local hotels and restaurants. The town is the site of a like-named national park and much tourist activity. In early July, we'll work together on a project to reforest the banks of an area river. But all that aside, I think the time has come for a new business ethic that takes into account the interests of future generations. It's been my experience that our children are our biggest motivation to get out of our comfort zones, change our way of thinking and work toward a healthier environment. We think about all the natural beauty that we enjoy. We want it to be part of our children's future, but it may not be if we don't act responsibly today.

The best way to take to heart the destructive side effects of modern life is simply to think about those who'll come after us. Using economic jargon, this approach can help businesses internalize some of the externalities created by modern life including its current business models.

A few weeks ago, The Economist, a British magazine, ran a cover story on how the geologists of the future would likely consider our current era the "Age of Man" (Anthropocene), due to the great changes that humans have inflicted on the planet. Many of these changes are irreversible. The fact that a magazine normally focused on provable economic themes would dedicate so much space to the topic is significant in itself. That this magazine views man's impact on the planet as worrisome and issues a call to action is a step in the right direction. It urges us to better understand our actions and "manage" them for the good of the planet.

The marketplace doesn't yet offer enough incentive for companies to give environmental matters the priority they deserve.

Consumers aren't necessarily willing to pay extra for environmentally sound goods and services. We saw that some 20 years ago, when we practically reinvented Costa Rica's coffee-industry rulebook to create and sell an all-organic coffee.

Managers today are under far less pressure from their companies and shareholders to produce environmental results that are as exacting and urgent as their financial results. A company's poor environmental performance usually doesn't influence the value of its stock in the public markets, except when a catastrophe like the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico takes place.

Until the market steps up, it's imperative that we business people develop and embrace a new business ethic that views ourselves as stewards of the earth, not exploiters who exhaust all its resources.

This ethic would be one that allows the voices of our children, grandchildren and all those who follow to be heard.

Until next time,

Pablo

Comments? Questions? Write to me at pablo@cafebritt.com

Gourmet coffee and health - here's to both

When I'm around people who know I work for Café Britt or when we're
drinking coffee, I'm often asked about coffee's effects on human health. What's
interesting is that people who are my age - 40 or older - usually ask me about
coffee's harmful effects. People younger than 40, far from worried about
coffee, often make comments about coffee's health benefits.



Coffee got a bad rap about 30 years ago following reports that linked it to
health problems. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, coffee was associated with the
same health maladies linked to smoking. Since Café Britt began selling Costa Rican coffee 25 years ago, new studies have begun to
reverse the findings of the earlier research. Empirical evidence about the
effects of coffee drinking on human health have yielded very positive results.



Many independent studies over the last two decades have concluded that drinking
coffee has many associated benefits. Apparently, the earlier studies didn't
differentiate between coffee drinkers who also smoked and those who didn't
smoke. In this group, it seems that the harmful effects discovered were linked
to the smoking, not the coffee.



As great lovers of gourmet coffee, it's very good news that today caffeine is
considered harmless to health. In fact, studies show that its stimulating
effects actually improve the attention span and concentration. Besides, the
coffee bean contains more than just caffeine. Some 600 chemical components have
been analyzed in different types of coffee, including many that act as
antioxidants. In fact, it is believed that most people who live in western
nations get most of their dietary antioxidants from coffee.



Many studies have since been carried out, including some that reveal certain
health risks that could be derived from excessive coffee consumption. Even so,
the benefits discovered in these studies often far outweigh the risks. What's
more, some studies that set out to link coffee to a health hazard actually
found only benefits to drinking gourmet coffee.



I encourage anyone interested in learning more about the many benefits and low
risk levels associated with coffee drinking to check out the following links:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_effects_of_coffee



http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/health-and-human-body/human-body/caffeine-buzz/#page=1



The National Geographic study is the most complete I've seen about caffeine.
Read all about it, and by all means sip a few cups of your favorite coffee
while you're reading!



All the best,



Pablo

Comments?
Questions? Write to me at pablo@cafebritt.com

Sustainability for Today, and Tomorrow

This week I had the opportunity to speak with a group ofinvestors about the Britt strategy. Our conversation comes as Grupo Britt isabout to issue bonds on the Costa Rica Stock Exchange, after receiving theproper authorization from the Costa Rican Exchange Commission (SuperintendenciaGeneral de Valores).
I explained how this company, which was created 25 years agoto sell the world’s finest gourmet coffees as a finished product from its country oforigin, has since diversified by entering the world of gourmet chocolates, retailing specialty coffee online (www.cafebritt.com) and gift shops.
We’ve made mistakes along the way. We’ve gotten out of someactivities and perfected our models for sustainable business. With a high doseof innovation our business thrives in many countries.
At Britt, we’ve created an organization that pursuesenvironmental sustainability in every aspect of our entrepreneurial activities.We were pioneers in marketing Costa Rican Organic gourmet coffee. We’ve launched manyinitiatives to reduce our use of water and energy. Recycling programs are ineffect at our facilities, and we’re always looking for ways to reduce wastefrom our production process. We are working toward becoming carbon neutral by2014.
On the social side, our coworkers participate in manyvolunteer programs. We promote the development of a Fair Trade coffee program for local farmers and othersuppliers by providing technical assistance and programs that encourageinnovation and product improvement.
One such initiative has benefited a group of women in LaCarpio, a community with social and economic challenges on the outskirts of SanJosé. Britt has provided seed capital, equipment and training to get thesewomen started making useful tote bags from recycled post-production Cafe Britt coffee packaging materials. The bags are on sale in our stores. Each includes a tagthat describes the project’s history and how these bags are changing the livesof these heads of household.
On the financial side, we’ve created a competitive business,a model for a developing country, through innovation we have climbed towardsthe peak of the value ladder. We enter international markets guided by ethical corporatevalues. All our business activities in every country we operate, are envelopedin the character and culture of Britt. This is a seal of guarantee for ourcustomers.
Britt will keep growing in proportion to our success inanticipating the needs of our customers. We live in a constantly changingworld. Some raw materials, such as unroasted coffee, have doubled in price ininternational markets over the last nine months. The markets are volatile, butwe know that tomorrow, you’ll receive the finest gourmet coffees, chocolates, nuts, cookies and personalized gourmet gifts developed and offered by people who go to great lengths to ensurethat you are completely satisfied. 
Britt will continue to grow as we make extra efforts topreserve and improve the quality and service that have enabled us to be wherewe are today.
All thebest,
Pablo

 

New products, new flavors, new ventures

About 10 years ago the strategy guru from Harvard, Michael Porter, was advising the Central American governments on how to develop national competitiveness.

He analyzed the coffee industry and found us. He then wrote a case study about how Café Britt went from being a commodity-based business that exported green coffee, a raw material, to a branded, value-added competitive business that roasted, packaged and sold its own gourmet coffee. This became known as the “Café Britt Model.”

Since then, other analysts from academia, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector, have come to us to get a better understanding of this process. Using Britt’s example, they began to envision roadmaps that developing countries could follow to add more value to their products and become part of the developed world.

There are more than 10 “Britt Case” studies being taught in universities in places like Costa Rica, the United States, and Croatia. All of these analysts consistently write about our ability to innovate with new products and services and how this skill is one of our core competencies. Both companies and nations welcome innovation as a source of competitiveness and sustainability. The Global Competitiveness Report (World Economic Forum) describes the most advanced economies as “innovation driven”.
I know we have done a good job transforming coffee, the most traditional agricultural product in Costa Rica, into a modern business that does not depend on the Brazil crop or the Vietnamese coffee policy.

What our business does depend on is offering great products and outstanding service to our customers, keeping them happy and constantly surprising them with new products, excellent service and promotions that offer real value. We see this as part of our nature, not as a business theory, but rather as part of our day-to-day work.
In this newsletter you will read about our new cookies, the most recent product category under the Britt brand name. Coffee and cookies are long time friends, so these are a natural addition to our growing line of products. I recommend you try the different cookies and let me know what you think of them and what your favorite ones are.
People always ask us why we just don’t settle for selling great coffee. They also often ask us how far we want to go. My answer to both these questions is, “I don’t know.” If the listener is up for some serious conversation, I add that at Britt we were born to keep going. We never stop. We always question ourselves, and we always try to find new products, new services and new ventures.
We love experimenting with new flavors, tropical fruit, chocolate and coffee combinations. I am actually writing this letter on a plane leaving the Dominican Republic, that beautiful Caribbean country where I just signed a contract to build and operate five Britt Shops in three airports.

We at Britt live for creativity and innovation. New product development is a key element of our innovation efforts. You will soon hear more about our new developments in the Dominican Republic. New products, new services, new cultures, new flavors, new ventures. You will get more of that from Britt in the near future. Stay tuned.
Well, I hope to get home soon, and I am looking forward to a cup of Founder´s Blend coffee with some Britt guayaba cookies!
Let me know what you think of the cookies at pablo@cafebritt.com, all feedback is welcome.

Saludos,

Pablo.

Sustainable Development

Pablo E. Vargas

CEO, Café Britt

I recently spoke with a customer from New Jersey who wanted to know what our company was doing to be a socially and environmentally sustainable business. I explained our approach to sustainability and the many programs and activities that we do to support the environment and our communities. He felt intrigued as to why we don't make more effort to communicate these efforts to the public.


Days later, a U.S. student who attended the CoffeeTour asked me a profound business-ethics question. She wondered what I thought was the role of a thriving business like ours in society. Are we satisfied to simply pay our taxes and comply with the local laws and regulations of the countries where we do business, or do we have a deeper responsibility toward society?

I will try to answer both concerns in this entry, even though I am aware that a thorough answer would deserve something that would look more like a book than a column. Let me address first the business-ethics question.

The role of business in society

In the developed world there's a constant debate as to whether corporate responsibility should go beyond maximizing profits and shareholders’ returns by simply paying taxes and complying with the law.

The "traditional approach" (let me call it that way for the purpose of this column) teaches that a firm's responsibility toward society is determined by law. A business has to comply with applicable laws and regulations, especially when it comes to paying taxes.
Under this model, the government, through the distribution of tax revenue, is responsible for all other aspects of society. This includes guaranteeing that conditions for workers, market conditions and pricing are fair, and that social and environmental equilibrium is preserved.

In this way, all law-abiding, tax-paying firms can dedicate all their energies toward maximizing profits and returns to shareholders, regardless of any "externalities" they may cause to society or the environment. The taxes they pay will partially be used to correct any negative effects resulting from the "externalities."

Compare this with the "modern approach" (again, the term is used only for illustration purposes in this column). Under this model, businesses also have to pay their fair share of taxes and abide by the law. They have the same goal of maximizing profits and shareholder value, however, they’re also expected to fulfill a more active role in society.

Not only shareholders but also customers, suppliers, the communities where the firm operates, and even the media have a voice in business decisions. Businesses are expected to help the government, get involved in educational projects and participate in technological transfer activities.

All good firms have a "philosophy." Company leaders, explicitly or implicitly, position their companies somewhere in the continuum that I described above, between the "traditional" and the "modern" approaches. It’s a mindset that usually stems from the founder or the CEO of a Company. It permeates all aspects of business activity and, most notably, it influences the way the employees think about their jobs and about their contribution to society.

Developed vs developing countries

Since developed countries tend to have better-run governments than developing countries, the firms based in developed countries may feel more comfortable letting the government handle the externalities they cause. These governments, through regulatory actions and taxes, can direct the actions of the firms, establish mandatory business practices and finance projects to improve the environment and society in general. On the other hand, governments in the developing world have a more limited capacity to effectively do all these activities. A responsible business in a developing country will, in general, end up taking a more active role in society than a similarly responsible business in the developed world.

Where does Café Britt stand?

At Britt, we have a high sense of responsibility. We’re based in developing countries, but we have a strong customer base in the developed world. We fit the profile of the “modern approach” I described above.

I believe the societal and environmental issues we face today are too important to leave to governments. We cannot be indifferent to challenges that might make, not only our company, but the world itself, unsustainable. Café Britt wants to contribute. Café Britt wants to make a difference. It's a lot easier to run a company using the "traditional approach," but we have chosen the difficult path. We still want to maximize profits and shareholder value, but we also want to help our society to find sustainable ways of doing business.

Likewise, we want customers who are aware of ethical and environmentally sound business practices, and we want to help our suppliers to improve their processes. We want to be a good citizen wherever we operate plants, stores or offices. We want to help increase the business standards so that other businesses might also get on the wagon of sustainability.

Now let's address the first question in the introduction, what do we do and why we don't we talk more about it?

So what is Britt doing?

Our Social Responsibility report starts with our Mission and Quality Statements because they guide our actions.

Café Britt's Mission:

To anticipate our customers’ needs and satisfy them in a fun and informative way with products and services that conserve and respect the environment, reward our investors and create benefits "from the plantation to your cup."

Café Britt Quality Statement:

We offer gourmet coffees, fine food products and specialty gifts in customer-friendly environments. We are committed to constant improvement and environmental protection, always following fundamental principles:

Communication: We work as a team, communicating constantly in a simple, sincere, honest and timely manner.

Commitment: We exceed the expectations of our customers, coworkers and investors by producing results on time, in full and with close attention to detail.

Creativity: We anticipate needs and desires to create innovative and profitable ways to ensure satisfaction.

Character: We believe in doing the right thing. We respect and adhere to all applicable regulations and are accountable for the use of resources and knowledge.

It's clear in our mission statement that our products and services have a very high goal -- to conserve and respect the environment. Our Quality Statement explicitly talks about our commitment to environmental protection. We talk not only about our shareholders but also our customers and co-workers. In the value of “Character” we touch our ethical values. We hold ourselves accountable for the use of resources, and we believe in doing the right thing. From those principles, words and values we take specific actions, like these:

Our Customers and the environment. We back our quality statement with an independently audited system. Our company is ISO 9001 certified. This means we have a quality assurance system in place that is certified every year to meet the international standard ISO 9001. Our quality statement is more than just nice words, it's hard work! In a similar way, we have implemented an environmental-management system under the international ISO 14001 standard, again, audited every year. This means we measure our impacts to the environment. We focus on our critical impacts and do something about them to reduce our environmental externalities and preserve the environment.

Transparency and Corporate Governance practices. We do formal benchmark analysis to make sure we compare favorably to other reputable businesses. We voluntarily adhere to the BASC (Business Alliance for Secure Commerce) standard, a security standard that is audited annually. We have a board of directors with five external members and only two internal board members. We promote transparency in all our business dealings and will dedicate the rest of this year to increase awareness of our Ethics Code, and train our staff in its application.

Our Co-workers. We do benchmarking to make sure our company pays above-market salaries to our employees. We promote the internal development of our employees so they have access to open positions within the company. We believe in training and do an annual employee satisfaction analysis to measure and improve the company's culture. We have emergency brigades prepared to handle most expected emergencies that could take place at our facilities, including fire, earthquake and terrorism attacks. Brigade members are trained in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Coffee growers. Our growers commit to Britt's social and environmental standards. We motivate them by paying above-market prices for their quality harvest. That’s our Britt Fair Price Policy guarantee. We provide technical training to growers. We have pioneered organic coffee practices in Costa Rica. We also promote the fair trade coffee label.

Artisans. Under the Program for Artisan Development, Café Britt joins efforts with the Costa Rican Ministry of the Economy, and the Costa Rican Technological Institute (ITCR), a local university, to improve the handicrafts produced by our base of suppliers. The artisans work for six months with industrial design students to improve existing handicrafts or innovate with new ones. Many of these improved handicrafts are then sold through our stores.
Our employees engage in many volunteer programs supported and organized by the company. They do specific community projects to improve schools, reforest lands and improve parks.

We recycle, produce organic fertilizer, save energy and water, reduce our carbon footprint and celebrate our annual Environment Week in June.
We support many other organizations. In fact, companies come to our facilities to learn from us. I lecture to about 500 students a year and to about 100 entrepreneurs about different aspects of how we apply best practices in our business.

I don't like greenwashing. I don't like people who overpromise and underdeliver. I feel more comfortable underpromising and overdelivering to exceed expectations. However, if we want to change the world, as our customer from New Jersey showed me, we will have to talk more about what we do. I hope we can influence some business people and convince them to introduce some sustainable practices in their own firms. I hope we can influence customers to learn about and identify sustainable practices and demand that their goods-and-service providers implement them. Let's change the world while it's time!

Café Britt at your service,