Lansing, Mich. — BIGGBY® COFFEE, the 340-unit coffee concept, has welcomed industry veteran Michele Waits as chief marketing officer. Waits has 25 years in brand management and more than 11 years in coffee marketing as a vice president for Starbucks. In addition to Starbucks, Waits has worked with brands such as Gerber and illycaffè.
“Michele brings a remarkable professional history to the BIGGBY® COFFEE team,” says Michael McFall, co-founder and co-CEO. “As we work to drive the brand forward, her insights will empower the marketing team to connect with our customers in a more individualized way, streamlining and modernizing our efforts.”
Just as BIGGBY® COFFEE offers customers coffee however they want it, Waits’ marketing strategy will take a similar approach. By leveraging personalized digital marketing and a social media presence, the brand will be able to connect with its customers how and where they prefer.
“Personalized digital marketing delivered through an app is a perfect way to be able to extend the ‘any way you want it’ conversation that we have in our stores to deliver a great customer experience outside of the stores as well,” Waits says.
BIGGBY® COFFEE, based in East Lansing, Mich., was started with a single store on March 15, 1995. One year later, and on the cusp of opening a second location, Bob Fish and Michael McFall decided to franchise the concept. Today, BIGGBY® COFFEE has 340 cafes across many states, including Virginia, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Idaho, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Kentucky and Florida.
SOURCE: BIGGBY® COFFEE