Grit

#204 Founder & Former CEO Blue Bottle, James Freeman: After the Exit

19 Aug 2024

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Guest: James Freeman, Founder and Former CEO of Blue Bottle CoffeeIn the six or so years since he sold his last shares of Blue Bottle Coffee to Nestlé, James Freeman has had a lot of time to ruminate — about how he succeeded in creating a unique café experience, and also the ways he failed his workers as a manager. But he’s already thinking about how he’ll be better in round 2. “I've changed so much — physically, mentally, emotionally — I feel like I could be a better collaborator,” James says.In this episode, James and Joubin discuss All About Coffee by William Ukers, Oliver Strand, performance anxiety, MongoMusic, farmers’ markets, “first touch” design, Parisian cafés, self-deception, Facebook ads, “great exits,” The Picture of Dorian Gray, “frictionless” coffee, Zeno’s Paradox, Yoda, iced oat lattes, espresso machines, The Devil Wears Prada, Steve Jobs, Angela Duckworth, and sandpaper.Chapters:(02:25) - Coffee is culture (07:10) - James’ music career (11:20) - Moving into business (15:17) - Starting Blue Bottle (17:55) - “Fun until it wasn’t” (21:09) - Food vs. tech in San Francisco (23:15) - The coffee shop experience (29:18) - Dissatisfaction and bad management (33:42) - Exhaustion (36:22) - Exit (37:39) - Anxiety and falling apart (40:31) - Paying the bills vs. the high life (44:08) - Visiting Blue Bottle today (46:53) - The decision to sell (51:35) - Could he have stayed? (54:01) - The next coffee shop(s) (57:35) - Returning to the ring (01:01:39) - What if it works out? (01:03:30) - What “grit” means to James Links:Connect with JamesLinkedInConnect with JoubinTwitterLinkedInEmail: [email protected] Learn more about Kleiner PerkinsThis episode was edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm

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13:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

01 Jan 1970

Fin de Semana

10:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

01 Jan 1970

Fin de Semana

12:00H | 20 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

01 Jan 1970

Fin de Semana

2ª PARTE | 06 ENE 2026 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

01 Jan 1970

El Partidazo de COPE

3ª PARTE | 22 ENE 2026 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

01 Jan 1970

El Partidazo de COPE

3ª PARTE | 04 MAR 2026 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

01 Jan 1970

El Partidazo de COPE

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Grit

#204 Founder & Former CEO Blue Bottle, James Freeman: After the Exit

This episode hasn't been transcribed yet

Other recent transcribed episodes

13:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

10:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

12:00H | 20 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

2ª PARTE | 06 ENE 2026 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

3ª PARTE | 22 ENE 2026 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

3ª PARTE | 04 MAR 2026 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

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