Brian Hexem
I build high-performing retail teams and create the operational foundation new locations need to thrive. From more than a decade leading Starbucks teams to supporting Gregorys Coffee’s Bay Area expansion, I bring hands-on experience in store openings, hiring, training, and customer service.
A career built across high-volume retail & hospitality
19+ Years of Retail & Hospitality Leadership
Building teams, opening locations, and driving high-volume operations
01
New Store Openings
Staffing, training, and operational readiness for high-volume locations ready for day one.
02
Team members supported at once
I scheduled, trained, and coached teams of up to 50 across staffing and service demands.
03
Leadership
Leading and supporting multiple locations at once—scheduling, coaching, and service standards.
I build strong stores and stronger teams
I spent more than a decade leading licensed Starbucks operations, developing new managers, and creating the service standards that keep customers coming back.
At Gregorys Coffee, I brought that experience to new-market expansion in the San Francisco Bay Area, helping open locations, hire teams, and prepare people to succeed from day one.
I believe great operations begin with clear expectations, consistent coaching, and making people feel valued. When teams have the support to do their best work, great customer experiences follow.
Store Operations
Building consistent daily systems that support quality, service, and sustainable performance.
New Store Openings
Taking new locations from pre-opening preparation to confident day-one execution.
Hiring & Team Building
Finding the right people and creating a culture where they can grow together.
Training & Coaching
Preparing new hires and managers with practical, hands-on development.
Customer Experience
Translating high service standards into welcoming, memorable experiences.
Sales & Service
Balancing commercial goals with the quality and care that earn customer loyalty.
Multi-Unit Support
Helping teams and leaders maintain strong standards across multiple locations.
Coffee Expertise
Bringing deep product knowledge and Coffee Master training experience to every role.
Real results on the floor
Three chapters from my work on the floor, from opening a location to keeping standards consistent long after launch.
01 · Open
From empty space to opening day.
- Situation
- Gregorys Coffee was entering the competitive San Francisco Bay Area market for the first time, with new locations needing to open on schedule.
- Responsibility
- I helped lead pre-opening setup, staffing, and operational readiness for approximately eight new locations within one year.
- What changed
- I prepared stores for inspections and permits, coordinated staffing and training timelines, and worked through the operational details that make a launch day possible.
- Outcome
- I launched new locations ready to serve customers from day one.
- Site readiness
- Permits & inspections
- Opening support
02 · Build
Hiring the team before the doors open.
- Situation
- Each new store needed a full team hired, onboarded, and trained before it could open, and high-volume stores needed baristas and shift leads who could perform consistently under pressure.
- Responsibility
- I recruited, hired, and onboarded baristas and shift leads, then developed them through hands-on coaching once the store was running.
- What changed
- I built onboarding and training plans, coached day-to-day performance, and worked to bring new hires up to service standards quickly.
- Outcome
- I created confident teams equipped to deliver high service standards from launch onward.
- Hiring
- Onboarding
- Coaching
03 · Stabilize
Turning launch standards into daily habits.
After opening, high-volume and multi-location operations needed consistent product knowledge, coverage, and service standards to hold up over time.
I served as a Coffee Master Trainer and supported additional locations with staffing, training, and inspection readiness. I standardized beverage and service training, covered leadership gaps across locations, and worked through day-to-day problems as they came up.
I maintained brand standards and steady performance, consistently meeting and exceeding store sales and service goals.
- Training standards
- Multi-unit coverage
- Service quality
Built from the floor up
My career has been shaped by frontline execution, people development, and opening new stores.
- Supported the opening of approximately eight new Gregorys Coffee locations within one year.
- Prepared stores for inspections and permits so locations could open on schedule.
- Led staffing, training, inventory, labor, service standards, and daily operations.
- Built and developed teams in fast-paced, high-volume hospitality environments.
- Partnered with leadership to improve execution, accountability, communication, and consistency.
What changed at this stage: I took on responsibility for hiring, launch readiness, and opening execution across multiple locations.
“Great leadership isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about setting clear standards, coaching every day, and making people feel valued so great teams and great service follow.”
01
Set the standard
Make expectations visible, teachable, and consistent before holding people accountable to them.
02
Coach in the moment
Remove obstacles and give real-time feedback so the team can do the best work of their careers.
03
Build ownership
When people feel valued and supported, they show up for each other and for every guest.
How the operation runs
The competencies I bring to every store and team, organized the way they show up on the floor.
01
Store Operations
The daily systems that keep a high-volume location running consistently.
- Store Operations
- Inventory Management
- Scheduling & Labor
- Food Safety
- Cash Handling
- Quality Standards
02
People Leadership
Finding, developing, and coaching the people who make a store run well.
- Hiring & Onboarding
- Team Training & Coaching
- Team Leadership
- Performance Coaching
03
New Store Openings
Taking a location from pre-opening preparation to confident day-one execution.
- New Store Openings
- Multi-Unit Support
04
Customer Experience
The product knowledge and service standards that keep customers coming back.
- Customer Service
- Barista Craft
- Coffee Master / Product Knowledge
- Merchandising
What colleagues say
Add a real recommendation here, for example a quote from my LinkedIn profile or a former manager at Gregorys Coffee or Starbucks.
Everything a hiring team needs
Download my full resume, or connect with me through LinkedIn and email.
More ways to connect
I read and reply to every message personally.
Building a strong opening starts with the right people.
Whether you’re hiring, exploring a partnership, or want to talk operations strategy, I’d love to hear from you. I read and reply to every message personally.