Barcelona coffee shop closes mid-day so owner can deliver his best customer’s mid-marathon order

Kindness can come from anyone around you — a family member or friend, a stranger you see on the street every day, or your favorite shop owner. It was yet another morning of rush, coffee, and grind lying ahead for Vlad, but this time something was different. Vlad — who goes by the username @itsvladp on Instagram — shared about the day his favorite coffee shop owner came to show his support while he was running a marathon. However, he was not standing amongst the crowd cheering, nor was he there to have a leisurely watch the marathon — he was there to deliver a refreshing drink to his favorite customer.

Vlad, an entrepreneur and coffee lover, who claims to survive his afternoons with “three coffees and no lunch,” loves to visit a particular café in Barcelona, known as Origin. He is a regular customer there, which makes the shop owner a little too familiar with him, so much so that when Vlad announced that he would be running the marathon, the owner decided to bring him a fresh batch of brewed coffee to give him an energy boost. However, the most heartwarming part of the story was that he shut down his shop in the middle of the day — unbothered about the loss of heavy footfall — only to be able to deliver the special drink himself.

A kind act like this one makes us believe in the goodness of the world and how some people, despite not being related to us by blood, can help us selflessly. This compassion is also a great example of building the perfect customer relationship and cherishing those who cherish your business. A study by Maia Seturi shares how building customer relationships can help you promote your business. Even if you can deliver the right goods and services, what keeps them coming back is your positive attitude and the relationship you've developed with them. It's the little things that matter, like asking about their interests, remembering their go-to order, or going the extra mile just like Origin's owner did. He may have missed a customer or two while keeping the shop shut, but secured a recurring one for life by showing Vlad just how important he is to them.

Further, goodness comes back to the giver in some form or the other — this selfless act by the owner indirectly helped promote his café when @paisleylandry asked, “What’s the name of the shop? I’d like to make sure I pay my respects to this man if I’m ever in the area,” and Vlad disclosed Origin's location in the replies. @thefoodierunner_ laughed, “This is the best thing ever! He was not about to mess up that hand off,” while @britantillo praised the owner, “Now that's customer service.” @k204cc expressed, “I don’t know if I’m just hormonal, but this was so incredibly special, I’m close to tears,” and @m0stlysad.smile wrote, “That’s so frickin’ cute he’s so excited and happy too to give it to you.” 

You can follow Vlad (@itsvladp) on Instagram for more lifestyle content.