Latest / Sweat Community / Ep.8 Barista to Billion Dollar Leader: Denise Nelsen on Wellness, Mentorship & Life After Starbucks
Transcript
- Sheena: Get started. Welcome back to Sweat Community Podcast, where we explore the people, places, stories that bring us together through movement, wellness, and community. Today's guest is Denise Nelson, a transformational leader who has spent decades leading businesses, including serving as senior vice president at Starbucks, CEO of Smashburger, and now co-founding Thank you so much for tuning in. Denise's story is a great reminder success isn't just about the title you hold. It's about creating a life that feels true to who you are. If you're a career transition, leadership challenge, or simply looking for guidance on what's Denise has offered ⁓ 10% of her normal coaching and mentoring services. Signal, a leadership and strategic alignment firm, Just mention sweat community when you reach out. And if you enjoyed today's episode, be sure to visit sweatcommunity dot com And subscribe So you can stay in the know on upcoming local wellness events, ⁓ podcast episodes, show notes, and everything happening in the sweat community. And always, what made you sweat today? We'll see you next week ⁓ She's a yoga teacher, wellness advocate, mentor, and someone I've known since we met in yoga teacher training here in Colorado. Denise, welcome to Sweat Community. Denise Nelsen: Thanks. I'm excited to be here and it's good to see you. Hear you. Sheena: I'm so, I'm yes, so you're here and it's so good to talk to you again. before we talk about billion-dollar businesses and leadership, I want to start where we met at Yoga Teacher Training at Core Power here in Denver. So when people hear Starbucks executive and 200-hour yoga teacher trainer in the same sentence, it almost sounds like two different people. ⁓ led you to going into teacher training? Denise Nelsen: Well, yoga for me had been a big part of my life for the last almost fifteen years. I first found it when I moved to Seattle originally with Starbucks. I a friend introduce me to it and I have been a loyal yoga ever since. And at one point, middle of career, at least 10 years before you and I were sitting next to each other in class, I had this incredible Sheena: Mm-hmm. Denise Nelsen: boss that was like we have to start thinking of your career more strategically what do you see yourself doing when you retire what will be the last job that you have and then what will you do after that? at that time I told him well I want to retire from Starbucks as the senior vice president of operations and have run the US business and then I want to teach yoga. And he was like, those couldn't be two more different things. But he sat with me in that moment and said, what are all the experiences you're going to have to have to make that your reality? time I told him I wanted to do that 20 years from then. he helped me actually work out a plan that I always have kept with me throughout my career. Sheena: Yeah. Denise Nelsen: so when I was wrapping up my time at Starbucks and I was like, Well, I'm doing what I said I'd do next. I'm gonna go get ready to teach yoga. it was such a beautiful time for me to have some space for myself, do something that I loved for many, many, many hours. I can't even begin to think back on how many hours we sat next to each other on mats during that time. But Sheena: Sure. Denise Nelsen: it really brought me back to what I wanted in my life and was such a powerful grounding moment for me. Sheena: That is amazing. I don't think I've heard that story before. I love that you've had this goal for years and then you're like, you know what? I'm putting it into fruition. ⁓ So that summer our yoga teacher I will never forget all the storms that we had, including the Highlands Ranch tornado of 2023. that day of the tornado, we had lecture. And I remember being so nervous and scared to drive up to Denver. There's debris, trees, all the things everywhere. But there was still class. And you were so calm. You picked me ⁓ and you were like, Let's go, we can this. you always that steady under pressure? Denise Nelsen: It seems funny to say this, but I think I am. I almost think that the more pressure there is, the more calm I feel inside. it does in some ways tie back to yoga I really can be super calm and grounded as long as I've given myself that space to say, this is what I want to do or this is the decision I need to make. I've learned a lot about giving myself some space. Sheena: That's incredible. love how you tie back to yoga to helping calm you and giving you the space that you need. So Sweat Community Podcast is about community here in Colorado. you are moving to Ohio be closer to family. but how have you called Colorado home? Denise Nelsen: Fifteen years. Colorado was home for fifteen years. Sheena: What initially drew you here and what kept you here for those years? Denise Nelsen: Starbucks is what brought me to Colorado. my husband and I couldn't be more excited. It was place that we always thought we'd want to live. even when I did have spend more time back in Seattle or he had some roles in other parts of the country, we always kept our house in Colorado and use that as our home base. I will say that the one thing we already in just a short couple of weeks missed is the sunshine because it lets you do so many things outside and that's such a healthy way to live. we found a great sense of friends and community there with shared interests and values і вас авсюмпляс толст в тінь єрс. Sheena: absolutely. ⁓ has such a unique culture being outdoors, around movement did living here influence your relationship with health and wellness? Denise Nelsen: it gave us an opportunity to do ⁓ more things. have always been passionate about health and wellness and fitness and have liked to work out. But when you can add not just, working out in a gym or going to a studio and you can actually take yoga classes outside or can run on the trails biking and things like that, a lot more options. makes it a part of your everyday routine versus something you really have to plan for. ⁓ to be honest, when I spent more time in Seattle, that would all be a challenge for me because there's not as many opportunities to do things outside. It's just a great place to really have wellness as a part of your life. Sheena: Yes, I think that's what makes the Colorado community so different All right. So while many people struggle to prioritize wellness with a demanding job, are leading organizations with thousands of employees ⁓ and generating billions in you started. At Starbucks as a barista in Chicago in 1997. What specifically made you fall in love with the company culture? Denise Nelsen: I started there, what I really appreciated was I was getting exposed to really incredible leaders that were super willing lean into helping you think about how you could build your career. I had just finished college, was feeling pressure, frankly, from my family and to go get a job and an office and use my HR and marketing degree, but I learned that I love to lead people. And so Starbucks really was providing me the opportunity to do that. I started there thinking I needed six months to think about it and I needed insurance. and within a month. the district manager was like, you should be thinking about being one of our store managers. it's an opportunity for leadership. It's a good way to start a career. I really appreciated that support. when I started at Starbucks there was less than 500 locations around the world if you can even picture that. we were getting to build that culture together. and show people what it was, both for customers and new communities, but for partners who were starting to join us. it was exciting to me, and was exciting to me for twenty six years to feel like I was a part of building something special. Sheena: You absolutely were to think of your growth from being a barista to senior VP. Did you ever imagine that your journey would lead to that position? Denise Nelsen: it took a long time for me to do that. early in my career I was really motivated to keep new things, and I was willing to move around or take new roles. I was curious about what was out there, but I don't think I realized. How big I could dream about it until I had the opportunity to work for the leader I mentioned at the beginning. Because he, was a director at the time. He really helped me sort of widen the aperture and think about don't just be willing to take the next job somebody asked me to do. but think about what are the roles that are gonna help me have the experiences the career ⁓ that I'm capable of having. he will always be an important mentor for me because he challenged my thinking in a way that nobody ever had before. Sheena: Incredible to have such a strong mentor goes such a long way. And look at you remember many decades ago that impact that he made on you. So that's very cool. fortune named you one of the most powerful women next generation in 2017. what made you feel powerful or help you grow confidence in yourself during that time? Denise Nelsen: still back at some of the things I've accomplished in my career and maybe I'm a bit I don't to say surprised by them, but inside I just feel like me. ⁓ Somebody that is willing to work hard, also likes to learn new things. I really love to build a team. to help people find success. that really fills my bucket. And so at the time that I got that award, what I was most proud of is I was leading a pretty complex team We were doing some complex work for Starbucks, and I felt like that recognition came from all of the things they were achieving and accomplishing. And so, I don't know that I necessarily felt powerful, it felt good to have a recognition for the team and the experience of attending that event with the other women that were recognized is something I'll remember forever. Sheena: can only imagine that must have been so surreal and hopefully empowering So leaving Starbucks after such a long chapter, did that feel like a huge identity shift? Was it exciting? Was it Was it both? What led you to leaving as an executive? Denise Nelsen: Yeah. ⁓ The culmination of a lot of things. had spent last several years running the US business, and I had loved a of that time. I had a little more than ⁓ a year with my team before COVID, where we did some incredible then we led through so many changes and we experienced in the world together, ⁓ coming out of that, and really understanding what would the business look like post COVID and what were the changes that need to happen moving to our new org structure because to be honest, I didn't Plan to have that role for as long as I did, and then had the opportunity to rotate leading the HR team for North America, which I was excited about. that's actually what my degree's in. So it felt like an exciting opportunity. At that same time, I was going past my 25th anniversary at Starbucks and I finally had some space to say, like, okay, what do I actually want to do next? And if I think I have a certain amount of time left that I'm gonna be working full time, what do I want that to be? and I had this realization that For as much as I love Starbucks loved all the people I was working with, I was ready to do something new that looked a little different and I wanted a bit of a break to think about that. it was a scary decision to make, but honestly, once I made the decision, I felt frankly very relieved and at peace with it. Sheena: Yes, feeling peace or that weight lifted off their shoulders, just tells you it was time to start the next chapter ⁓ of whatever that may which I think is you started yoga teacher training after your Starbucks journey. I remember were both very new yoga teachers. And the opportunity for you came up to be CEO at Smashburger. ⁓ And then became ⁓ CEO at Burger in January of 2024 and put teaching yoga at a pause. So led you to lead at Smash Burger? And how did opportunity come up? Denise Nelsen: Sure. ⁓ that opportunity came up through a recruiter that ⁓ I had heard from quite a bit the past. And she was like, There's so many things that I think would be interesting for you to at least explore. at the I was like, I actually don't know if I'm gonna go back a full-time role like that. I didn't leave Starbucks thinking, ⁓ I really want to be a CEO or I really want to be a COO. And she's like, well this would be a great way for you to find out. They had made a lot of leadership changes And so it was presented as an opportunity to build a leadership team. that would be built for growth. there just were things that I was like, okay, yes, this would be interesting to explore. and it was based in Denver. So that of course was super interesting. at the end of the day I decided that I should give it a try and find out if that's what I want to do. ⁓ And it was an amazing learning experience for me. took a couple of things away from that. Like one There's probably different questions could have asked during interview process to really understand what it would mean to have growth brand and make sure we were all on the same page about what they wanted to have happen. the other thing It's cemented for me that I just don't really feel a need to be the one in charge anymore. I've had so incredible opportunities to get to run great businesses and lead great teams. my real passion right now is to support other people, being successful and finding their success, whether that's helping them solve complicated problems at work, whether that's coaching them through decisions or transitions or thinking about what's next with their career. Or whether it's getting back on the mat and helping people with a wellness experience through yoga. it led me to making the decision to join my business partner now because I realize I wanna be in a support role that enables others and I don't necessarily want to be the one running the day to day business and making the calls. it doesn't motivate me the way it did several years ago. Sheena: Yeah, that completely makes sense. It's like that experience changed your definition of what you want out of a career out of leading. Denise Nelsen: Absolutely, It also really challenged me to think about how do I feel about this role? what do I want to be doing right now? I knew something felt off. my brain was like, Yes, you can keep doing this, but there was a part of my heart that was like, if you did keep doing this, for how long and why. And I realized I can define myself in a different way at this point. And have the space to be in alignment with it. Sheena: Absolutely. And good for you for following your heart and what you're aligned with and not staying around for something that you don't feel fully connected to. Is there something you would say that people misunderstand about leadership at a company of that size? Denise Nelsen: What comes up for me when you ask that is I think it's easy to look at person that's leading at a big company or in a big role ⁓ and assume that's who they've always been in life ⁓ or that it's come easy. I think life every day for everybody comes with its complexities. it's much harder than it looks. And I think people don't really get to see the whole human. Sheena: Mm-hmm. That makes sense. They kind of look at you this leader When you're at that level, you're not Denise anymore. you're the CEO, you know, and it kind of Denise Nelsen: was yeah, it it probably showed up for me more at Starbucks towards the end. I mean I started there as barista. who ⁓ was the first person in their family to get a degree, to move from where we all grew up. and working hard to work my way up. it was shocking to me at a certain point to have people go, Well, you're just some rich executive that's always had a job like that. And when I would look at myself, I would see Denise the Barista that was just trying to figure out how to pay the bills and get through the day. so it was interesting to say, okay, this is how people see me today. And yes, I'm dressed up and I'm an executive and I have a bigger job now, but inside there's still that person that worked hard to put herself through school and figure out how to have this big career someday. And didn't know if she ever would. Sheena: That's so inspiring. to see how hard worked at this. someone might look at you see a complete different person, but you're still Denise. ⁓ So while you've been in these. High powered roles, movement a non negotiable for you, or were there seasons where it became difficult to prioritize? Denise Nelsen: it was a non-negotiable. movement's been a big part of my life. I grew up pretty athletic. and it really does help me stay grounded, I know sounds very yoga-like to say, but I often found in the busiest seasons of my career, having space to think, whether it was Taking a run outside, riding my bike, going to a yoga class, lifting weights, having that space just alone to let my brain have time to process was so important in keeping me calm and not distracted when I want to show up in front of the people that I'm leading or the people that are my peers and be my best self having some space that clears my head so that I can come in calm and knowing where I'm at there's no chance that I would give that up. And honestly, I would know in my mind, if I missed a workout that I was gonna be more stressed all day. it was a major part of how functioned. And still is today, Sheena: of course. I feel like fitness, helps navigate, the pressure and responsibility of any position, especially executive leadership. make all Denise Nelsen: Yeah. I also appreciated the community of it. whether you're into core power or for me checking into Vasa Fitness, having people who recognize you as a part of community that want to talk to you about something else besides work. Sheena: like. Denise Nelsen: was for me Sheena: Mm-hmm. Yes. my gosh. Well that leads perfectly into since this is sweat community and many of our listeners are based here in Colorado, ⁓ have to ask about your favorite wellness spots. you've experienced so much of Colorado's wellness scene over the years, what are some of your favorite places for movement, recovery and or self-care? Denise Nelsen: Yeah. Sure. Sure. Absolutely. Well, I was always such a huge fan of being outside, going to Red Rocks and hiking around or running up and down the stairs. I definitely would recommend the outdoor yoga classes during the summer there. And my husband spent the last several years as the CEO of Vasa Fitness. He just retired. they have incredible gyms. and I think anybody could feel welcome there no matter where you are on your journey. And there's just so many options. I highly recommend all of their studio classes, whether you want to build muscle, or if you love yoga as much as I do, the flow classes are incredible. So those are some of my favorite places. Sheena: I love that. Yes, we will circle back on but you did mention you do hikes at Red Rocks. Were there any other trails or hikes that you would recommend Denise Nelsen: ⁓ it's probably more places. So I think you can't go wrong with Colorado Springs or Golden. we were always more about a short drive. those are good options that weren't far from, you and I in Highlands Ranch. I also would say you can't go wrong with getting out on the water in Chatfield and doing some paddle boarding. Sheena: Hmm. those are experiences that every local or visitor to Colorado should definitely try. remember to your house when we were trying to practice our routines before auditioning or before our group classes that we were nervous about. And I just loved your home gym. So how often were you actually using? your home stuff compared to getting out into the community for workouts or wellness experiences. Denise Nelsen: that's a great question. we really made the home gym come together during COVID. I was using that multiple times a day. and then we found balance with it. when I had early days or late nights with work, having a great gym at home was a huge part of staying in routine. we like a good mix. it's not good to just be doing everything by yourself. So getting out into the community was good for me too. Sheena: Mm-hmm. I think people are craving connection through fitness and wellness more than ever. And speaking of community, you have mentioned your husband Rich, who was part of ASA. he has built much of his career around creating fitness and community as ⁓ he was the CEO of ASA eight and just retired last month. What have you from other? the two of you process leadership stress similarly similarly or completely opposite? Denise Nelsen: ⁓ we process it pretty opposite. I like to talk things through out loud. He likes to have some quiet time to think. but in terms of dealing with the day in and day out stress of it, we both do lean into our fitness routines, we can talk things not always about work. he'd rather think that through by himself, ⁓ we think community and leaning into our wellness routines are the things that we've done over time. Sheena: What have you learned from watching Rich lead in the fitness and wellness space? Denise Nelsen: I've learned a lot from Rich in the time that we've been together and from our entire journey together, we've both have had, executive jobs. And what I've appreciated is watching how he brings a team together, how thoughtful he is about how he wants to solve a problem. in the fitness space specifically, he went into that with a huge passion for he was just so curious about what was it that people were looking for in the community. How do you meet that need? How do you create real programming, that will impact people's and get real results coming in and being a part of those classes. it was fascinating for me to watch how he leaned into really learning about that and who he brought together. they have such incredible team there at Vasa. we're excited to see them continue to succeed. And hope that they will soon open some where we're headed to live now. Sheena: Hmm, that's great. Yes, How cool would that be? Do you think he'd go back to working there if they opened one up close or just use it for Denise Nelsen: We'll just use it for the gym. he had been planning his retirement for a while, so he's looking forward into what he wants to settle into next. Sheena: Yes, well earned. So how do wellness and movement show up in your relationship today? Denise Nelsen: Well when we work out, we work out together almost every day. So whether that's him going to yoga with me or just this morning we were at the gym nearby, getting in some cardio and lifting weights. So we like to make that a of what we do together. It's definitely one of the shared interests that we've had since way back when we first met. we're definitely looking forward to building another fun home gym that we can make good use out of. Sheena: Awesome. Do you see yourselves doing anything with that home gym? Denise Nelsen: You never know what could come in the future. But we are very excited about the home gym ⁓ we've been or I should say Rich has been working really hard on designing it and it's much bigger than we had in our previous house. And there will be some space if I'm interested in teaching yoga and I know one of the things he's really been thinking through is he's always wanted to lean more into his personal trainer certifications and we think it could be an opportunity for us to potentially do some training of different out of our home. so we will see what future holds. Sheena: That is so exciting because you never know what will come of it. it might be next venture will leading fitness in your home, which is so cool. So, you're approaching a new season of life, you've had incredible career success, but it feels like you're more focused on alignment and ⁓ mentoring leaders, patterns do you consistently see people struggling with or how can you help? Where do you see new leaders are needing the most support right now? Denise Nelsen: Yeah, I I I mean I would it depends on what you're going through as a leader. oftentimes as working with different leaders, ⁓ they need some space to process the context that's going on around them. if you're changing into a new role, it's bringing a lot of different expectations, it's bringing a lot different people to work with. and it's needing to out how do you show up as your true self and get the work done while also learning all this new context that's around you. So how do you think that through sometimes there's a lot of leadership change happening around you and knowing how to navigate the new relationships and having a safe space to be able to talk about how to handle that is important. Sometimes people are wanting to change their career. and sometimes that's substantially to a new industry or a new role. And sometimes it's just I want to figure out how to take the next step. And again, they need a way to process through and learn about how they want to do that. And so, some of the work we do at Signal is working one on to help people get centered and aligned around who they are and what's in front of them and then from there realize they have everything they need inside to make those decisions. Sometimes it's just helpful to have someone to talk that through with and will let you make decisions for you. ⁓ one of the things I learned about in my career is just because I would do something one way doesn't mean that that's the right way for you to do it. So it's not about telling people what to do. It's not even often about sharing your own experiences. But sometimes we just get to these points where we don't have a place to talk about it and there's no time to think. Everybody has it inside them, I believe this, to know what to do. You just need the conditions to be able to let that out for yourself. Sheena: I agree fully. how can somebody reach out to you to have you mentor ⁓ them? Denise Nelsen: Sure, absolutely. you can always find me on LinkedIn. It's Denise Nelson and it's N E L S E N not O you can find me through our signal website, which is S ⁓ G N L. leaveout the bowels, dot com. then, I'm always happy to have people reach out to me directly over email. Sheena: Mm-hmm. Denise Nelsen: ⁓ and that's Denise at Clear Signal S G N L Leave Out The Vowels dot com. but I'd love to hear from anybody that would like to have a chat and and learn more about how I could support them. Sheena: Amazing. really that you're doing that. ⁓ I'll spell of that out in the show notes so people can find you Perfect. So to close up, I like to do rapid fire quick questions and then answer first things that come to mind. working at Starbucks for 26 years, what is your coffee order? Denise Nelsen: Okay. gonna be super boring like a grande pike place black no cream or sugar. Sheena: Ha ha ha. that is boring, but I love it. That's classic. order is just straight up coffee with cream. Drip coffee. I love it. Can't beat it. sauna or plunge? Denise Nelsen: ⁓ both. I think you gotta do them together. sunrise for sure. Don't let the day get in the way. sunrise for sure. Don't let the day get in the way. Sheena: workout or evening workout? ⁓ I wish I could be more like that. most underrated habit. Denise Nelsen: getting enough sleep. I have learned a lot about sleep in the last two years. Sheena: Sleep, it's so hard to do. I have The supplements for sleep and I haven't found one that works well yet. Sleep is very challenging, favorite way to move your body today. Denise Nelsen: am actually super into ⁓ on the treadmill at an incline. Sheena: Do you The fifteen, three, and three or something like speed of three, incline at fifteen for fifteen minutes. Have you heard of that? Denise Nelsen: I have heard of that. I would say I'm probably not that precise. I also get bored pretty easily, so that with lifting weights is usually a pretty good, easy workout, and then I have heard of that. I would say I'm probably not that Stretching with the foam roller is I think probably one of the best ways to end the day. Sheena: great. doing that to a nice movie or show. favorite Colorado fitness studio besides Vasa. Denise Nelsen: besides Basa. ⁓ this is a tough for me. can I say this? My personal trainer while I was in Colorado, Tamika Robinson, incredible. So look up Jarfit. They just moved to a new gym, and it's a beautiful facility. Yeah. Sheena: Perfect. Well absolutely look that up. All right. ⁓ last that ask everybody, what has made you today or this week or in general? Denise Nelsen: I would say 30 minutes on the stair mill this morning for sure was making me sweat. And then I am learning it is much more humid in the Midwest than it ever is in Colorado, and I forgot what that is like. So anytime I take the dogs outside. Sheena: Yeah, that humidity is no joke. Well, thank you so much, Denise. this was so much fun to chat with you again and connect with you. And I love hearing your journey and just all that you've come from. ⁓ And I think you are so inspirational. Denise Nelsen: Thanks for having me, Sheena. It was fun. Sheena: it was so fun. Thank you so much. ⁓