He picked his city center location, the first one he had launched, where his mother once assisted with baking pies!

People whispered as they recognized him. Some smiled. An older woman near the window clapped quietly.

For the first time in years, he felt the fire that built his empire — the reminder that service meant something. That people mattered.

When the rush slowed, he stepped outside for a breath of cold air and pulled out his phone.

He texted HR: “Mandatory empathy and service training. Every location. No exceptions. Managers must work one shift a month on the floor. Effective immediately.”

He put the phone away, walked back inside, tightened the apron strings, and took the next order with the same pride he’d had the first day he ever opened those doors.

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