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says. "I can't imagine a bigger compliment than that." "We complement each other in the way we work," Baca explains. "Totally," Truby agrees. When they're edu- cating Verve staff or wholesale customers, he says, "Baca rolls in and lines it up, gets people excited, introduces the concept, and I come in with the back end, the more in-depth stuff." Each had been a coffee educator and barista trainer for years with the company, but it was only in 2013, with momentous changes at Verve, that they fully understood their careers in coffee were real. This was when Chris Jordan—a widely admired veteran of the international specialty-coffee commu- nity—returned after 13 years abroad, where he worked with Technoserve and Dormans after leaving Starbucks as head of global quality, to join Verve as the company's chief operating officer. Verve was—is—growing fast, with two cafés slated to open in 2014 in Los Angeles, and an L.A. roastery/café set to debut in early 2015. Chris Jordan brought the kind of organization and structure that a company moving as quickly and efficaciously as Verve required. "Verve had hit the cap of organic growth," Baca says. He also took Baca and Truby under seri- ous consideration; Colby and Ryan were well aware that the two were not only indispensable, but had way more to offer than was being requested of them. In July, Truby was named head of retail for Northern California, and two months later, Baca was named head of business development. They're excited as they list their job responsibilities for me. "My job now is a lot of coaching and teaching," says Baca, who oversees Verve's wholesale, tech, and events departments, and somehow finds the time to keep creating the training videos he's become famous for. "My job is to make sure everyone can be good at their jobs. One of the biggest things I bring is focus on coffee in sales while instilling confidence." Truby, on the other hand, manages all of the company's Santa Cruz stores, which include the East Side; the small but endlessly charm- ing coffee bar located on the ground floor of Verve's roastery and administrative building; as well as the company's stunning downtown showcase store. When I meet up with him at the roastery coffee bar the morning of my day MadCap Cofee Company Halfwit Cofee Roasters Able Brewing Baratza Aerobie ZPVS ZPVS NFUIP E KPVSOFZ 66 barista magazine B o o k 5 5 - 8 8 . i n d d 6 6 Book 55-88.indd 66 3 / 1 9 / 1 4 1 0 : 0 7 P M 3/19/14 10:07 PM