The Power of Kindness in Hospitality – Lessons from Anfield to Abbeygate Street

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When Luke, one of our lovely regulars (and proud owner of a stunning husky called Goyard 🐺)  built our website, he clearly thought we had a lot to say. He even added a blog section, ready for all our thoughtful insights on coffee, wine, and life at Blend. The only problem? We’re not really “newsletter” people, or hard-marketing types, so the blog sat there quietly gathering digital dust.

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Until now.

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We’ve decided to use it not for sales or announcements, but simply to share the things that matter to us, the moments, stories, and ideas that spark something real. The kind of things that remind us why we love doing what we do.

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And this first one starts with a story about kindness.

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A few weeks ago, I took my son to Anfield for his first live football match, something I’d been dreaming of doing for years. We’d talked about it for weeks, planned every detail, built up the excitement. In my enthusiasm, I made a stupid mistake: I bought tickets from a third-party website (the government are, thankfully, finally cracking down on this).

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When we arrived, we did it all, bought a half-and-half scarf (not my idea, that was the wife’s), took in the famous murals, the Shankly Gates, and sang Jota’s song with a lump in our throats at the live stage. We were buzzing. Then I realised the tickets were fake. My stomach dropped.

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That was it, I thought. A wasted journey, a ruined day, and the moment I’d been most excited to share with my son, gone. But then something remarkable happened. The ticket team at Anfield, more specifically a lad called Josh (who had no obligation to help) took the time to listen, to empathise, and to do something about it. They didn’t have to fix my mistake, but they chose to. They found us two seats to a sold-out game. In that moment, they didn’t just give us access to a football match - they gave my son and me a memory we’ll never forget.

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That simple act of kindness reminded me exactly why I fell in love with hospitality in the first place. It’s not about transactions, it’s about moments. It’s about people.

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The Colour in Hospitality

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Will Guidara, in his brilliant book Unreasonable Hospitality, writes:

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“Service is black and white. Hospitality is colour.”

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That line sums it up perfectly. Anyone can deliver good service: you take an order, bring it to the table, say thank you. But hospitality – real hospitality – is when you see someone. You notice what they need before they ask. You care enough to go a little further, not because you have to, but because you want to.

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This is the kind of hospitality that creates stories people tell for years.

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On a sidenote, I have told so many colleagues to read this book, I found so much value in it and it opened my eyes to what I had been doing my whole career and explained why I am addicted to hospitality.

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Why Kindness Matters in Business

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In service-based businesses, this feeling can so easily get lost. Processes, targets, and policies take over. Staff are told to stick to scripts instead of trusting their instincts. But those instincts, empathy, curiosity, generosity are what make hospitality human.

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It’s something independents often do best. We have the freedom to care. To take an extra minute with a customer. To make small gestures that don’t show up on a spreadsheet but build something much more valuable: loyalty and connection.

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That said when I worked for Everyman cinema a large group, they really understood this. Random acts of kindness weren’t just encouraged; they were celebrated. Whether it was surprising a guest with a complimentary drink on their birthday or helping someone who’d dropped popcorn all over the floor (we’ve all been there), those moments were part of the culture. They made people feel something.

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And that’s exactly what we try to build here at Blend Coffee and Wine Bar in Bury St Edmunds.

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Kindness in Everyday Moments

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At Blend, our acts of kindness don’t need to be grand. They’re often quiet, almost invisible. Like remembering a regular’s name or noticing when someone switches from coffee to tea because they’ve had a long week. It’s offering a puppuccino to a dog before the owner even sits down. It’s making space for a parent juggling a buggy and a latte.

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Those are the moments that show we’re paying attention.

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It’s also what separates places with soul from those without it. The difference between a good coffee and a great experience is rarely the drink itself, it’s the feeling that someone cared.

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Kindness costs nothing, but it’s the most powerful investment a hospitality business (or any business in my eyes) can make. It builds relationships, loyalty, and reputation in a way that advertising never could.

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From Anfield to Abbeygate Street

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That day at Anfield reminded me that the best kind of service doesn’t come from obligation, it comes from heart. It’s the same energy we bring into Blend every morning: warm, genuine, and personal.

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Because hospitality, at its best, isn’t about perfection. It’s about people taking care of people. Whether that’s a football club saving a father and son’s day, a cinema team making someone’s evening brighter, or a little coffee and wine bar on Abbeygate Street making sure every guest feels seen, it all comes from the same place: kindness.

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So here’s to the small moments that make a big difference. The unexpected gestures, the smiles, the warmth. Because that’s what turns service into hospitality – and customers into friends.

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