Ignace Santospirto, a 76-year-old former barber, was feted yesterday for completing 10 years as a Starbucks barista, the last three in Westwood, where he is known to treat customers at the High Street java joint with great courtesy and respect.
Twenty-five people gathered Tuesday morning for a surprise celebration at Starbucks' regional office in Newton, presenting Santospirto, known as "Iggy," with a coffee grinder and a silver trophy featuring the Starbucks siren. The group included Iggy's wife, Audrey, and his longtime friend and haircut customer, D. Major Cohen.
"This was something unexpected," Iggy said. "They opened a big door, and I saw all my old managers, my old friends."
The 10th anniversary celebration was a milestone in a journey that began with a haircut in 1998. Iggy had been cutting Cohen's hair since around 1965, when Cohen was 15. (Said Cohen: "If you think about the number of different times I've lived through ... he's cut my hair every way. Let me just say that I used to need a blowdryer."
After 20 years as an arts educator at Beaver Country Day School, Cohen joined Starbucks as a barista, eventually becoming a manager. As Iggy cut Cohen's hair in the Newton barber shop Final Touch in 1998, the 66-year-old told Cohen he too wanted to become a barista, partly so he could get health insurance for himself and Audrey.
Cohen recalls telling Iggy "in the kindest way possible" that he did not fit the normal profile of a Starbucks applicant. But Iggy shadowed Cohen for two Sundays and began working.
A decade later, he's still at it, having worked 20 hours a week. Because of Starbucks' high turnover, making the 10-year mark is "very special," said Cohen, who now works at the company's Seattle headquarters.
"There's no greater gift that you get as a district manager and as a regional manager than to see the success that Ignace has had, because it's what we say we do," Cohen said, explaining that Starbucks promises employees their jobs will be more than just jobs.
Later Tuesday morning, a small group of colleagues praised Iggy at the Waban store, toasting him with a holiday coffee.
The group included Diana Pompeu, the former Westwood manager who stole Iggy away from Lexington, where he had worked for seven years; Westwood supervisor Paula Lawlor; and current Westwood manager Leanne Goldberg.
Cohen said Iggy has been responsible for three perfect 100-point customer service scores under a "mystery shopper" assessment program Starbucks used to keep watch on its stores. One of those scores came when the personable Franklin resident was alone on the floor - a "manager's nightmare" that Iggy turned into "a manager's dream," Cohen said.
Iggy said what he has enjoyed most are the many good friends and good customers he has met at Starbucks, where he is sometimes able to use his language skills. Besides English, he speaks Italian, French and Arabic.
Though he is not one to brag, Iggy did tell how another Starbucks store once competed with his store to see who could get the most tips.
"I said, 'You cannot beat me," he recalled. "My cup is between $45 to $50 when I work the whole day."
Daily News staff writer Edward B. Colby can be reached at 781-433-8336 or ecolby@cnc.com.
