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He remained rigid and unyielding, blinking evenly as if my narrowed gaze was having zero effect on him like it used to. No further explanation rolled out of him, no apology either. The conversation was over.
“That’s all I’m getting?”
Finally, he looked at me, after first staring hard and long at my computer, and then extinguished a hearty breath. “Having some luck with the job search?”
“Actually, no. But I am working on something. Can I be blunt?”
He straightened in his spot, squared his shoulders, and swallowed. “You always were.”
Dang. Didn’t think it would come back to bite me in the butt, and yet here it was, some dozen and a bit years later.
Before I could embarrass myself further, I put a hint of professionalism into my tone as I inhaled and began. “What’s your PR plan? I overheard a customer go on and on about how the Coffee Loft doesn’t run any kind of promotions, how it’s always the same thing.”
“But it works, right? We’re turning a nice profit, I get to do what I love, and everyone’s happy. Besides, it’s not always the same thing, occasionally we do introduce new flavours of coffee and pastries.” There was more than a hint of defensiveness in his voice. “Our customer’s ratings and reviews give the store a –”
“A 4.87 out of 5. I’ve done my homework.” I smiled and set my hand on top of his, hoping to diffuse the sudden tension, but it was more than that. I craved his touch, and man, did it feel nice. “Do you have a quick business minute? I know you’re always busy, but I have an idea for you.”
With a slight hesitation, he clasped his hands together and put on his most serious face. It was impassive and hard to look at.
“I promise my idea won’t hurt, or even cost you much investment.”
“Okay.” He swallowed loud enough to hear. “I’m listening.”
I laid it all out before him, going against my gut, and showed him the raw data I’d collected over the past several visits – it was a small sample size, but it gave me a strong indication of his customer base. If he was impressed, he hid it well, but the same could be said if he was upset. He was impossible to read, and it was infuriating.
“I propose we – or you – have a fun campaign, and we can set it to conclude on Valentine’s Day.”
“That’s a long way away, we’re barely at Halloween.”
I nodded and a stray strand of hair fell out across my forehead. It was long enough for me to tuck it behind my ear, and the whole time I did it, Carter’s gaze had followed.
“Valentine’s is three and a half months away. Things like my idea take time to create, build and implement, and you can’t pop up and plan the idea with only a few short weeks. I mean, you could, but why?” I clicked over to another tab, showing off the Love Notes idea that sprang to me on a drive home. There were some mock images I’d created which desperately reeked of a third-grader competence since my designer skills were a total bust. Regardless, I continued with my unrehearsed spiel. “What makes the Coffee Loft so endearing? What keeps customers coming back?”
“Our high quality, ethically sourced coffee, and locally made treats,” said without feeling, like he had been preprogrammed to have the answer ready on the fly.
I looked long and hard into his eyes, daring him to show some expression, but it was all for naught. Clearly, I needed to approach this from a different direction. “Awesome. Is that what your customers say?”
“My reviews speak for themselves.” Another matter-of-fact statement.
“Yes, they do, and they speak volumes, but not one mentioned the ethically sourced coffee and only two mentioned the locally produced treats.” For good measure, I produced the long listing of reviews and pointed out the two in question. “But don’t get me wrong. Those are admirable, but it’s not the reason the customer keeps coming back.”
A slight crease formed between his brows.
“I’m just trying to help you be bigger than you ever thought possible. What is your end goal with the Coffee Loft?”
He blew out a long, drawn-out breath. “I’m already part of a chain.”
“No, I got that, and there are locations sporadically throughout the US, and two in Canada, both in Alberta, with your store being one of them. How do we make the Coffee Loft a must-stop location for locals and the tourists travelling through to the mountains?”
“With A+ customer service.”
“Of course.” I was hitting a wall. A massive brick wall. This was not going the way I’d envisioned. Stupidly, I thought he’d embrace the idea and get so excited, he couldn’t wait to get started.
“Cara, what you are proposing is great, but I need to be bluntwith you.”
My heart constricted as he spoke with a deep and familiar tone often used by my bosses. I braced myself for his words since the pitch of his voice seemed to be on the same level as his stoic expression. Deep down, my breath turned cold.
He shook his head, and the word barely breathed out. “No.”
