Community Updates
Updates from Jacob
Store Updates
July 16, 2020 - COVID Safety Procedures
As our country continues to navigate COVID-19, we wanted to take this opportunity to share a more in-depth look at what we are doing at a store level to ensure the safety of our teams and customers. We take this very seriously and are very conservative in our practices.
We continue to remain open for pick-up ordering using our contactless set up at the door. While many counties have allowed for it, we have stayed consistent with not opening up our cafes out of an abundance of caution. We feel a great responsibility to keep our team members, and customers, safe. In this model, no customer will interact with a team member in a way that the CDC will define as “close contact”, ensuring that we are upholding our “contactless” promise.
Customer Protocols:
- Please use the Philz App to schedule orders and arrive at your pick up time.
- If that is not possible and as we want to be inclusive to all customers, we will accept walk up orders using card reader, gift card or cash when our mobile queue allows for it. Please note these orders may take longer as our mobile queue has set pick up times and will take priority. We ask that all customers wear masks
- Masks are required when picking up and/or placing orders from our store fronts.
- Please respect our 6ft distancing markers while waiting, respect other customers.
Team Member Protocols:
- We continue to do daily symptom & temperature checks for all team members.
- Masks and gloves are provided and required at all times inside our cafes by our team members.
- Increased hand washing, cleaning and sanitizing routines are being enforced.
- Special COVID-19 safety training is mandatory for all team members.
- We take a more cautious approach than recommended for any potential COVID case. We are in touch with health departments, and have a Safety Committee dedicated to implementing current practices, but also evolving as more information becomes available.
These protocols and procedures will continue to evolve as we learn more. We are committed to keeping our team members and customers safe. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to reach out to us to learn more at info@philzcoffee.com
June 23, 2020 - Our commitment to the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Meaningful change does not happen overnight. Saying we stand in solidarity with the Black community is not enough. We have to continue to work hard to create a culture and environment that fosters and embraces diversity and is free of discrimination. Philz Coffee is committed to the Black Lives Matter movement and combating racial injustice for the long-term.
We thank you all for allowing us the space to listen, learn and be thoughtful with our planning. Over the past few weeks we have engaged in many meaningful conversations across our company including a powerful call on Wednesday, June 17 with more than 400 Philz team members. During this call, a handful of team members shared personal stories and experiences around racism and discrimination. It was eye-opening and shined a light on the work we have left to do as a country, as a company and as individuals. From those conversations and stories we have committed to immediate actions to better support our Black team members, to respond to our customers concerns and to continue to push forward towards greater systemic change. We have also formed a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee that is now meeting weekly to help drive us towards further progress. They will focus on not just short-term, but mid-term, long-term goals and accountability.
Here are some of the additional actions we are focused on:
- We are hosting additional calls with stores over the next two weeks to continue to amplify the voices of our Black team members. Store hours will be modified to allow us the time and space to host these. Follow your local store Instagram for any hours changes.
- We have made unconscious bias training available through LinkedIn Learning with additional required training to come.
- We have added mental health resources, to support all team members.
- We have compiled a list of local organizations fighting against racial injustice that our team members can choose for Philz to donate to (via survey). Philz will donate $15 per team member up to $10,000 total. Donation options include*: Color Of Change, Black Lives Matter, Black Alliance for Just Immigration, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Black Organizing Project (Oakland), Equal Justice Society (Oakland), The San Francisco Foundation, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area, ACLU (San Diego), San Diego Black LGBTQ Coalition, Know Your Rights Camp (Chicago), Chicago Urban League, Racial Equity in D.C. - D.C. Policy Center, and Showing Up for Racial Justice DC.
At Philz, we build community. We bring people together. We better people’s days. During this time, we must come together, recommit to our values and move forward to make progress. Our mission is greater than any one of us and drives us forward.
From all of us at Philz, we thank you for your continued support.
June 23, 2020 - How to Philz Safely
Philz is taking a responsible and phased approach to reopening and implementing a number of new health and safety measures, all guided by CDC and local health department best practices. While your Philz experience looks and feels a bit different, rest assured that every re-opened Philz location is guided by the same mission, which is to better your day. Your continued support of Philz means the world to us.
We wanted to review our current operations and share best practices on #HowToPhilzSafely.
A review of our current operations:
- Philz is currently offering contactless pick-up at stores using the Philz App for ordering.
- Our Team Members are following strict safety protocols including: symptom and temperature checks, wearing gloves and masks at all times, on top of stringent hand washing procedures, maintaining safe distancing during working shifts and regularly scheduled cleaning/sanitation of workstations and customer surfaces.
- Two queue system for pick up (check in line and waiting area), with marked social distancing queues. We are asking that all customers maintain a safe distance and wear masks during pick-ups.
- In addition to offering contactless pick-up at stores, we have recently partnered with Uber Eats to offer delivery of coffee bags and have begun to roll our delivery of prepared drinks for select locations.
What’s Next?
As communities begin to lift Shelter In Place restrictions, we will work diligently to determine the best approach for Philz. Our north star remains the health and safety of our team, and customers will continue to utilize the Philz App for ordering for the foreseeable future.
We are constantly assessing and innovating our product offering, procedures, and partnerships to better serve our customers. Thank you for your continued support.
Please note: We have taken enhanced health and safety measures for you and our team members. Please follow all posted instructions while visiting a Philz location. An inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present. COVID-19 is an extremely contagious disease that can lead to severe illness and death. According to the CDC, senior citizens and guests with underlying medical conditions are especially vulnerable. By visiting a Philz location, you voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19. Please help keep each other healthy and safe.
April 15, 2020
Dear Customers,
We made the extremely difficult decision to close our stores on March 17th to protect the safety of our team members and customers. Personally, this was one of the most difficult decisions we had to make. Since the early days of Philz, my dad and I have never dreamed of closing down stores but we knew we made the right decision through the lens of our people-first culture. With that said, we had to figure out how we’d take care of our team members, keep them engaged, get back to serving our communities and support the health of our business. We have to stand strong at the end of the crisis, so we stepped up and worked hard with our team members to test a safe way to Philz for our teams and customers.
We are pleased to report that we’ve designed a safe way to Philz for our customers and team members and have reopened most of our stores as of April 8th. Some of the changes include moving to mobile ordering, and placing cups at the entrance door for pick-up, making our entrance act like a walk-up window or drive-thru on foot. We are limiting how many team members work per shift, and are providing masks and gloves for protection, conducting rigorous and frequent sanitization along with daily cleaning checklists, and much more, which you can see in our other updates here.
The Philz Mobile App plays an important role in enabling a safe experience. It eliminates the need to order in-person and pay a cashier supporting a contactless experience. It also allows you to choose a specific pick-up time which helps support social distancing by reducing the crowd gathered to pick up drinks. It offers the full Philz menu including drinks, food and bags so you can enjoy Philz at home. And most importantly, the app has been custom designed to mirror the human-centered, personalized experience you get when ordering in store, by carrying a conversational tone when choosing your drink and letting you meet the Barista that’s hand-making your cup. The app will tell you exactly when your drink is ready. When you pick up, your name and your Barista's signature will be on your label, to reflect that cup of love that was personalized for you.
If it is your first time at Philz or first time using the Philz App and you need some help navigating through or choosing a drink, please reach out to us @Philzcoffee on twitter. I’m also available to help anytime @JacobJaber. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank our team and customers for the amazing support of Philz. It’s been very touching to hear stories from customers about how happy they are that Philz is back up and running and how it provides that sense of comfort and normalcy we are all craving. Our mission at Philz is to Better People’s Days. We want to build community through kindness, authenticity and connection. This is why we exist. We remain committed to this mission now more than ever.
Please download the Philz Mobile App, and come visit us and please help spread the word by telling a friend! Lastly, please keep the feedback coming, it is how we get better. As we continue to monitor the situation daily, please stay tuned for updates.
#HowtoPhilzSafely #MovetoMobile
@JacobJaber
April 6, 2020 - Store Locations Currently Open
At Philz, our mission is to Better Days. We made the decision on March 17th to temporarily close our stores as it was in the best interest of our team and customers. Since that time, we have been working tirelessly on a way to re-open that is safe for all and allows us to better your day. Given that this is an uncertain time, we are beginning to test a mobile pick up concept in a few of our stores before deciding to go further.
The following locations are now open for a mobile-only experience and we’ve added food and pound bags to our mobile app for added convenience. Hours are limited and vary by locations. For most up to date hours check the Philz App.
San Francisco
- Berry
- Castro
- Civic Center
- Corte Madera
- Embarcadero
- First St. Mobile
- Folsom & Beale
- Front St.
- Mission
- Noe Valley
- Ocean Ave.
- Potrero
- Russian Hill
- Westborough
- Dogpatch (4/20)
Peninsula/South Bay
- Burlingame
- Campbell
- Cupertino Main
- Forest Ave
- Los Gatos
- Middlefield Rd.
- Redwood City
- San Mateo
- Sunnyvale
- Cupertino DeAnza (4/20)
East Bay
- College
- Gilman
- Fremont
- Walnut Creek
Sacramento
- Davis
- Midtown
Los Angeles
- Belmont Shore
- DTLA - Hope
- El Segundo
- Glendale
- Hollywood
- Pasadena
- Santa Monica
- Studio City
Orange County
- Fullerton
- Huntington Beach
- South Coast Metro
San Diego
- Del Mar
- Encinitas
- La Jolla
Chicago
- Evanston
- Hyde Park
- Lincoln Park
- Wicker Park
Washington DC Area
- Adams Morgan
- Ballston
- Bethesda
- Dupont
- Navy Yards
There are a number of steps we have taken to make this possible including:
- Moving to a mobile order only experience and placing the cups at the door for pick up. Think of our doors like a walk-up window or a drive-thru on foot.
- Unlike other pre-order apps, you can pick your *exact* pick up time, which will limit crowding and physical contact at the pick up table.
- Limiting the number of team members that are in store to 3 or less, and requiring 6 ft plus between them at all times.
- Working towards having the same team members work together each day.
- Daily symptom checks including temperature reads for anyone working a shift. If any team member is not comfortable working, they do not have to.
Download the iOS or Android app ahead of time to get started and please tweet us @Philzcoffee if you need any help on how to use the app or suggestions on what to order.
We have heard from so many of you that you would like to see us reopen under this model, and we are inspired by our team members who want to serve the community during this difficult time. One of our core values is to Make Progress and Deliver on Quality. We are excited about this test and to Better your Day!
We’re looking forward to your feedback. Hope you are staying safe & healthy.
March 25, 2020
With increased delivery needs across the country, our shipping partners may experience delays in processing deliveries and updating tracking information. We are working hard to fulfill your order as quickly as possible. Please check our partner’s websites for more up to date information. (UPS Service Guarantee, USPS Service Alerts)
March 18, 2020
A note from our Roasting Plant Leadership:
Monday we announced our decision to close our stores temporarily for the safety of our customers and team members. Today we want to take a moment to address the steps we are taking at our Roasting Plant to ensure safety of our team, and our process. We are currently open to produce coffee with a small team. Since we are a food processing facility, we have always maintained strict food safety policies including hair and beard nets, gloves and frequent cleaning. Below are the additional steps we are taking to keep our team and facility safe:
- We have increased our Industrial Cleaning staff and increased the frequency of cleaning all counters, doorknobs, common surfaces, machine common touchpoints and are sanitizing with an alcohol-based sanitizer.
- Disposable gloves are worn in any area where a human hand could come in contact with coffee.
- We use a Pathspot hand scanning system which provides us with empirical hand washing data so we can validate there are no foodborne pathogens on the team members hands.
- We’ve installed additional hand sanitizer dispensers throughout the facility including breakroom areas and bathrooms.
Beyond these precautions we are checking in frequently with our Roasting Plant team to ensure they are comfortable in their work environment.
- Anyone who is not directly needed for the production process is not allowed in the roasting plant.
- All remaining work stations are set up to create social distancing.
- We held informational town halls with our team members led by our Food Safety and Food Defense Team Members to educate them concerning the COVID 19 Virus characteristics, how we can work as a team to prevent its spread, our personal and social responsibility in doing our part to keep each other safe and what we can do as a team to keep our facility clean and operable.
- If any team member feels uncomfortable working at the plant during this period, we are working with our People Ops team to work through options including time off.
We appreciate your ongoing support and concern for the wellbeing of our teams. We will continue to keep you updated here and through our social channels.
March 16, 2020
Dear Philz Customers,
I shared a message just a few days ago about the measures we’re taking to protect the health of our team members and customers against COVID-19. Like you, the Philz leadership team and I have been closely monitoring the situation in order to react in a bold and quick manner.
Now we are at a point that we feel the best decision is to temporarily close our stores starting tomorrow, 3/17. We’ll continue to track the situation daily and will reopen our stores as soon as it is safe to do so. We’ll be sure to communicate with you when that happens. Please know that we’ll be doing everything we can to care for our team members during this temporary closure, including paying for scheduled shifts and continuing all current benefits. As you can imagine, this was an extremely difficult decision, but we lead with our values at Philz. We know this is the right decision—the health of our communities is paramount.
We can’t wait to reopen and better your day with a Cup of Love. In the meantime, we have waived shipping charges from 3/20 – 4/20 (details coming soon on our website) to make it easier for you to enjoy Philz at home. We have an amazing selection that I hope you will check out. Please visit our website and make sure to tell a friend: www.philzcoffee.com.
We look forward to being back up and running so we can serve you. We will get through this and come out stronger, I know it.
Stay tuned, stay safe, stay healthy.
Sincerely,
Jacob Jaber
@JacobJaber