When I started as a manager, 1982, our Capitol Hill store was #304....back then the store number told the order in which it opened...also a couple of initials were added. PP #301 UV #302 BV #303 CH #304 U2 #305 (University Way)PS #306 (Pine Street) BC #307 (Bear Creek) Redmond? Gee that’s way the heck out East!... 4S #308 4th and Spring (First store built with an espresso bar!
Anyway, Fresh Roasted was exactly correct, the actual roast date on masking tape, followed by # of pounds, stuck to the metal lime green can (maximum 20lbs.) Plastic 5 lb bags were used for small quantities.
Starship, the truck from our Roasting Plant located at 2010 Airport Way South delivered three times a week to my store. We filled our 16 Coffee bins, one on top of the other (with a separating sliding door), putting freshest date into the top, moving masking tape down and pulling the door open when the older date sold out. We hand scooped, weighed and ground 1/2 and 1 pound bags totaling 1200-1300lbs a week! And we were in 4th place for volume...Pike, University Village and Bellevue all sold more! And boy did our store smell good....and so did we! The aprons were brown back then, coffee bags were stamped by us, colorful stickers came later.....and the menu boards (which hardly changed very often) were sliding plastic strips with number chips for price. Oh how we all dreaded changing that menu board! Add 45 min to closing at least!
Such great cherished memories
Was that when we still used rubber stamps on the white and brown bags or had the stickers arrived by then? I used to love doing “custom blends” for customers in the white plastic containers that sat on top of the scales.