Gennaro Pelliccia – Taste buds
Costa Coffee is a coffeehouse chain and a subsidiary of the Coca-Cola Company. They are famous for their roasted coffee, which helped them expand and have branches in over 31 countries. Part of their success could be attributed to their expert coffee taster, Gennaro Pelliccia. In fact, as part of their investments, Costa Coffee even got his tongue insured for $13.3 million.
In an interview, Gennaro revealed that he is able to distinguish thousands of different flavors in a cup of coffee. He uses this skill to detect if there are any defects in the product. It is an excellent business decision for Costa to have insured their greatest asset, but we can imagine the pressure it added on Gennaro’s shoulders.