So, this one is definitely more of a Seattle joke, but the idea might spread, so I’ll explain a little.
As most of you, whether you live in Seattle or not, know that this town is a coffee town. Starbucks aren’t so much just a coffee shop as they are an entity that is a basis for a Seattle lifestyle: you get your breakfast at one of the seven you pass on your way to work, you might break change there, you might use them to give directions (”Take a left at the next Starbucks, pass 3 Starbucks, and on the third turn right until you see a drive-thru Starbucks”) Certain shopping centers (University Village, but the University of Washington, comes to mind) have them so many and so strategically placed that by the time your current skinny no-whip latte runs dry, you’ve just happen to arrive at an entirely new Starbucks.
I don’t really have a problem with this. Starbucks isn’t the worst corporation in the world, and Seattle has room for them all. I very rarely see an empty or unpopular ‘Bucks even if you can see another one from the location you’re standing in, so obviously it works. Capitol Hill is definitely more of a “neighborhood” community and we take pride in our little local businesses, especially those who have been a while, and, obviously, coffee shops.
So, what William, myself, and a huge number of other Capitol Hillbillies have a problem with is Starbucks disguising themselves as local coffeeshops, trying to get a piece of that local pride pie. Two of these have popped up in the Hill area, and they’re generically named after whatever street they happen to be on. They have a unique, non-Starbucks look to them, but carry SB coffee. My favorite little touch was the cups: like a lot of smaller shops that can’t afford printing their own branded cups, they have plain white cups with their name stamped on them. Details details.
But when the Hill is already crowded with so many excellent, excellent cafes, it just seems hurtful to them to place a faux local coffee shop right next to a real one that’s already trying to compete with limited funds. Starbucks and its brand has become so saturated in this area that it actually has to sneak its way into neighborhoods. It goes against everything common business practices preach: your name, your brand, it’s everything — until you’re so grande that you have to pretend to be another company just so that it doesn’t look silly.
Again, I’m pretty sure these are trial stores for Starbucks to see how popular they are, so I doubt there’s too many off these types of stores around, but if you see a new cafe opening up with a generic local name and some fancy furniture, take a close look at the front door: if it says “inspired by Starbucks” you might as well go to the real deal, or move along to an actual local coffee shop.
(Vivace Espresso Cafe — one of Seattle’s best)
i dont like Starfucks at all
dude that’s SUCH bs. I hate it when companies do that :/ We have a local coffee shop (one.) but i have to take a bus to get there, and i just can’t make that route for my coffee fix, but i don’t like sb that much either. So i just have tea. I’d rather get cofree though :/
John D. Rockefeller use to do the same thing when moving into a new market and would use his huge corporation to under cut the local competition until they all went out of business. Then he would reveal his great secret, raise prices higher than before, and tell everyone to “suck it” because now they had no other choice.
I thought Seattle’s Best was also owned by Starbucks?
I support its monopoly!
YES.
ILU STU.
A couple of points of order:
1). Starbucks IS local. They started here and all of their corporate offices are here.
2). They never made any kind of secret that they were going to be doing this.
3). The stores aren’t new, they were already there.
4). People were whining about how SB was all out of character for the neighborhoods they were in. SB changed the look and feel of those stores to fit the character of the neighborhood (again, announcing their intentions) and people started whining about how they were ‘infiltrating’ the area.
Even if it’s not the best coffee, it’s a good company and does a lot of good for the region. They offer full benefits to part time employees (who else does that?), give generously, support the gay community and purchase from local coops in the regions their beans are grown in.
All really good points stud, but it all depends on how you’re looking at it: whether or not the latte is half full or half empty…
1.) That definition is stretching “local” a bit, don’t you think? Having tens of thousands of stores over the world does not fit “local” in my definition just because this is home to them. “Local” is a place that has all if not most of its stores in one area (Local to Seattle, local to Washington State) and has those people specifically in mind when it does business. $.90 of every dollar spent at a truly local place stays within the community, while only $.10 of a dollar stays here when spent at a corporation.
2.) To the average consumer, it isn’t apparent enough that these stores are/were Starbucks, with the exception of the tagline on the door that says “inspired by Starbucks”
3.) That’s true of 15th St. Coffee, but not of the new Roy Street coffee across from Deluxe — that’s a totally new store that became a Faux-bucks.
4.) No doubt about that, but I’m sure it’s not the SAME people complaining. It’s just a “no pleasing people” situation. 15th St. Coffee as Starbucks never bothered me, it’s the other way around. As a huge supporter of local businesses (as in, my definition above) it irks me to see these stores.
I honestly don’t have a single problem with Starbucks themselves, and I do think that a lot of people out there who do are making assumptions. They do a LOT of good stuff for the size of their company — they scored a B on the “Good Business Guide”, only second to local business. That amazing! That included impact on environment, employees treatment, and relationship with their suppliers. So Starbucks as a corp isn’t evil. BUT, when I want to be supporting my community, my Capitol Hill, my Seattle, I do not want to be tricked into not doing so by these very well done imitations. Since Roy St. Coffee went in, I feel I’ve had to go to Joe Bar even more, lol. I’ll also add that I don’t support a business JUST because it’s local. If I hear the quality is iffy, be it the food, merch, staff, or practices, no use supporting that.
You’re so cute–being all objective! Excellent points from both Clark and Stu. But I do love me some Starbucks consistency when I’m craving my iced, decaf, caramel, macchiato with whip! Just saying…