Lisa Tanasi, COO of Mothership & Sunrise Coffee (Interview 32/100)

This week is yet another outcome from my November 2025 Instagram algorithm dive to find companies that were doing their part to support their community. Mothership Coffee’s Sip with Purpose program chooses a new nonprofit to support each quarter with customers purchasing a designated drink with proceeds benefiting the charity. It’s another creative way to integrate a community giveback program into the DNA of the business model. It’s a way of prioritizing the people all around the business, inside and out, to give them an extra boost of the warm & fuzzies. It’s this culture that brought me to Lisa Tanasi, COO of Mothership Coffee & Sunrise Coffee in Las Vegas, Nevada. 

Capitalism for Good looks for the definition of “community” that involves a group of people cheering one another on and encouraging them to keep going, keep trying, and keep doing good work. Lisa talks about ending the interview with Mothership with a compliment about the company and a genuine wish for success in the future. That’s what community is all about here. It’s a true crowd cheering on one another regardless of whether or not we reap the benefits of it. It’s truly wanting folks and companies to succeed when it’s deserved regardless of what our role is in that success. 

The warm & fuzzy community is also backed by logistical & strategic operational practices that provide the structure to succeed. Much like what leaders like Stacy Grace and Lindsey McCoy mentioned, Lisa & Juanny have clear delineations between roles so each person can thrive within their own wheelhouses. That gives room for each to thrive where they do best. There’s a key function to the internal community that seems to happen when strengths are recognized and fostered by aligning with a professional role regardless of what level we’re talking about. Again, another theme that Lisa brings up is when someone earlier in her career recognized her own strengths and encouraged her to lean into them. When we have those folks in our communities that spot our talents and support being able to run free with them, we often figure out what feels best for us. We learn from the things that we mess up or that don’t work as well as we wanted them to. But because we enjoy the freedom and following the things that bring us joy (and that give us our own warm & fuzzies), we continue to follow them (again, I really think Tory Hall is onto something here with the evolutionary advantage of the warm & fuzzies…).

Entrepreneurial grit in 17 years gave her the thick skin that she needed to thrive in the corporate world. In corporate America, she talks about how she earned her metaphorical MBA getting education & exposure on all the foundational aspects of a large company. Then moving into the world of Mothership, she brought with her humanity, humility, grace, and recognition that we’re all imperfect humans just trying to do our best. It’s the personal connection. Even as I was editing this episode, I pictured Lisa’s words hitting home for folks and texted a friend with a heads up that I would recommend she prioritize this episode (shout out Sara!). Lisa’s way of connecting is something that we can each find our own throughline within our own lives and careers. Calling out my own bias here, obviously I also personally love someone that encourages me to “stay in the questions.” If I’m going to follow the same logic of the themes here, it’s likely because that question strength gives me my own warm & fuzzies when I lean into it. It’s empathetic leadership like this that we can all learn something from and can all find ways to set others up for success. And for that, I’m incredibly thankful that she took the time to share her story & perspective for all of us to learn from! 

Shout out to: 

• Motivational speakers
• Linda Hoffer

Bonus mentions: 

• Happy Ending Chocolate

The extended full version of this episode is available at Patreon.com/CapitalismForGood. 

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