Great American Cookie Company co-founder and former Caribou Coffee CEO Michael J. Coles tells the story of his successes and setbacks in "Time to Get Tough."

Great American Cookie Company co-founder and former Caribou Coffee CEO Michael J. Coles tells the story of his successes and setbacks in "Time to Get Tough."

Before disruption, grit and brand building were buzzwords, those concepts drove rare, original thinkers like Michael J. Coles. Coles and his partner turned a small investment and a cookie shop at Perimeter Mall into $100 million in sales as the Great American Cookie Company. Coles went on to run for office, turn Caribou Coffee around and become a record-breaking endurance cyclist.

His success story comes with its share of devastating disappointments and a variety of crashes, but it also has many opportunities in which Coles picked himself back up and got back in the saddle – in his case, on a racing bike. Coles joined "On Second Thought" to share the story he and historian Catherine M. Lewis tell in his memoir, "Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life."

"On Second Thought" host Virginia Prescott speaks with Michael J. Coles.

 

Get in touch with us.

Twitter: @OSTTalk

Facebook: OnSecondThought

Email: OnSecondThought@gpb.org

Phone: 404-500-9457

Tags: Caribou Coffee  Great American Cookie Company  Michael J. Coles  Georgia Business  Cycling  kennesaw state university  OST Full Show  Atlanta  Georgia  Macon