Late one evening at a Starbucks store, a lady traveller was looking for a coffee mug as a souvenir for her daughter - a ritual she followed on every trip. The store manager told her it was out of stock and suggested she come back the next day. The traveller was disappointed - she had an early flight and would not have time to return.
A barista overheard the conversation and quietly made a call. Afterwards, she approached the lady. She offered to get the mug from another store and have it ready for her the next day before her flight.
Paul Lam, head of partner resources at Starbucks Asia-Pacific, vividly recalls the incident. He says it demonstrates the kind of self-initiative easily seen in Starbucks' 'partners' - a term it uses to describe its employees.
'Passion and commitment are the qualities we always look for,' Lam says. 'It is not too difficult to find someone who is capable. The challenge is to get someone who has heart and passion for the job.'
Starbucks has about 1,300 front-line 'partners' in roughly 120 stores in Hong Kong and Macau. They work at stores operated by Coffee Concepts, a joint venture between Starbucks Coffee International and local catering group Maxim's. Most front-line partners are young people and Starbucks is committed to training them into future leaders by offering comprehensive training programmes.
'Almost all baristas are hired from outside the industry. We train them as 'green beans' as we believe it is important for them to establish a good foundation with us,' Lam says.