OPEN THREAD conversation-starter: Is Starbucks cruel to the turkey and chicken in its sandwiches? (And does it really matter at this point?)

PETA (the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) wants Starbucks to urge its chicken and turkey suppliers to adopt a less cruel method of poultry slaughter: controlled-atmosphere killing (CAK). PETA points out that Starbucks promised a year ago to pressure its suppliers to switch to CAK, but the company has done nothing more than send a letter out last March. (Apparently PETA hasn't heard that the sandwiches are about to be eliminated.) Discuss this or anything else Starbucks-related in the open thread. (Read the PETA press release)

Comments

Good. All companies should be pressured to, at the very least, raise animals and kill them humanely. Is it really too much to ask? Especially to Starbucks.

And before any crazy comments get left, check out www.meat.org and tell me there's NOT something wrong with that.

They're not saying don't eat it, just treat the animals a little better. Everyone can agree with that. Chickens and other animals are as smart as a dog or cat, it's just our perception of them that is their death sentence. They feel pain all the same.

I

[BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL]

Some may say that they way the treat the "partners" at the store is like a "Southern plantation." And they expect the turkeys and chickens to be treated any better?

Nobody is saying that partners are treated great - but can't ALL life be respected? Come on.

"less cruel method of poultry slaughter"
Does ANYONE listen to PETA? Even when I agree with this orginization, they piss me off.

Yep, lots of companies do. :) Maybe you should read a little into them before you judge.

Just to quote a few..
Last year pepsi and coke both halted all animal tests and funding of animal tests due to PETA.
Also, fast food chains Mcdonalds, Burger King, Hardees and others bumped up animal welfare and even began using CAK.
Polo, Prada, Tommy H, and other fashion designers stopped using fur in their clothing lins.

PETA is relevant, and it's not even just them. Now a days everyone from Fox News to the New York Times are covering things that PETA has been saying for 25+ years.

Examples:
FOX covers the firing of Smithfield slaughterhouse workers after PETA investigation shows incredible abuse
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,317947,00.html

NY Times covers the cruelty to animals and horrible impact on the environment from raising animals to be killed
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/weekinreview/27bittman.html

[RD]

I feel like PETA pressures companies to agree to their demands. That's why not everyone approached by PETA rolls over and gives in to their protesters (and I'm sure there's lots of instances that the pro-PETA people here won't cover). I'm all for animal rights, but there's got to be a better way than PETA pressure.

[DallasSM]

I am all for the ethical treatment of animals, but shouldn't PETA what us to not use the meat at all? I mean what is a less cruel means of slaughter?

Are you aware what CAK is, exactly?

Jamie Oliver showed this method on British television... Warning: the video is pretty upsetting to a lot of people. It had a pretty strong reaction in the UK when it aired, but it's something people need to see. We're so disconnected from our food-making processes that we forget chicken doesn't just come in little packages from the butcher. There was a life behind it at one point.

You have to watch it through a bit, but you'll get there. How is this humane?

I'm not really sure what the solution is for SBUX and PETA's request, but this can't be it.

[LW]

I think that PETA is trying to do something good, in a bad way. ooooo...a threatening letter. They should instead do a little more research on Starbucks. They should find out who is the food director for the nation and set-up meetings. Then do follow-up. Their point can get across in a more mature manner if they didnt publicly threaten Starbucks. I feel that PETA went in that direction so that more people would go to their website and read their articles, by using the name of Starbucks. If they would act like adults, they might be taken more seriously. Stop writing, and start acting.

[Hirayuki]

Credit for the cartoon goes to Natalie Dee, who asks for a linkback if you use her stuff.

So, I disagree with you, that mean I haven't done any research, or know anything about that? I know Corp America tends to do what they say, to avoid the negative public image, however, when you mention PETA to most people in America, they just sort of role their eyes. They have a political agenda, and know that a lot of the "info" they put out there is nothing more then political propaganda. Any organization that goes to the extreme measures that PETA does, sort of throw's there credibility right out the window, even if they are making a valid point.

[EXTRA FOAMY]

It apperantly doesn't matter the announcement made that we are doing away with sandwiches altogether..If PETA can slap a corporate name up there they will get a much bigger public reaction..

oh and natalie dee, i adore thee.

PETA does everything through the media. They don't contact companies, they send letter to them via media outlets. They are just a bunch of media sluts. They don't set up meetings; they go to the local TV station, or newspaper. There methods are backwards, and stupid, and they end up turning more people away then opening up eyes. I am against animal cruelty, but PETA does more harm then good imo.

People
Enjoying
Tasty
Animals

Sorry, I saw that on a t-shirt once and thought it was funny.

[Decaf Drinker]

Question for you all. 10:30am - not busy in the store, maybe 1 car at DT. Is there any reason it would take----say---- 15 minutes to make a drink?

Decaf,
What did you order?

It would depend what the drink is. Maybe, you ordered iced tea and they had to make another batch? Or maybe it was iced coffee and there was no more iced coffee so they had to make another batch? Did you order a decaf frap? They might have had to measure it out and then brew it and then use the rapid cooling method (RCM) to prep it.

[STARBUCKS GOSSIP webmaster]

DECAF DRINKER - If you pose that question and seriously want an answer, you're going to have to give more information. And I'd say that after five minutes of waiting, I'd pipe up and ask what's the delay? Did you bother to do that?

why are you asking this question in this forum?

Are you kidding me?

I am now fully convinced that the WM for this site is a fully biased tool.

Are you even capable of saying something even remotely positive about Starbucks?

Pathetic dude

[STARBUCKS GOSSIP webmaster]

>> Why are you asking this question in this forum?

Why can't he/she? It's an OPEN THREAD where you can ask/comment on anything Starbucks related.

"Are you even capable of saying something even remotely positive about Starbucks?”

OK, can you think of something good to say about waiting 15 for a drink that takes only a few minutes to make? Go ahead, find something "remotely positive" about that. The WM is being practical if you ask me.

O, and WM, sorry, I didn't the big bold "OPEN THREAD" in the title. My apologies.

[Melody]

Since this is an open thread:
I want to know who else has been to a Starbucks with a Clover machine and LOVED the special cup of coffee that they got with it?? I hope they make the Clovers much more widespread. I'm in heaven! :D

[SoCalSnowBunny]

I agree with PETA's cause, but they make all of us "sick" with the way they approach solvency. It may seem like they care, but they use more blackmail than they do partnership. Publicly denouncing companies is the easy way out...what have they done to partner with Starbucks on this issue? Come on, PETA, if you want me to care, then you need to work with the public, not against them (or their employers)

Anon,
I was talking about the thread starter topic, not your unusual wait time.

To answer your question though.......ever stop to think that the delay was caused, for whatever reason, to ensure that you got a quality beverage?

Enjoy your vanity

[HopkinsBella]

In response to DECAF DRINKER, there possibly was a rush that occurred inside the store, that took the staff by surprise, and they *may* have forgotten about their drive-through customer. A couple drive-through stores I've been to do not allow a customer in the DT to see what is going on in the store at all. And what was mentioned above regarding the making of decaf for various beverages IS a legit possibility, depending on what drink was asked for.

Also, was it really a 15-minute wait? Or did it just seem that long? I know that no one ever exaggerates things around here.....

What the larger "moral of the story" is this: mistakes happen. Sometimes a customer just has bad luck to encounter said mistake. And you just have to get over it. If it happens repeatedly at one location--just don't go to that location anymore (as I did with one particularly awful location nearby--that IS closing, BTW, after being open for less than a year--bwa ha ha ha ha ha!). If it was a one-time fluke and your day was "ruined" because of it, there is nothing that anyone at Starbucks can do to help you.

And seriously--if it was that much of a problem, why didn't you ask?

O, don't you worry, I totally enjoy your vanity!! I love it!

[Decaf Drinker]

I posted on this thread last wknd - saying the SBux I go to doesn't really have legendary service, in fact - it's always quite awful. I honestly wondered if there was any reason making a vanilla latte would take 15 minutes - yes, it really was 15 minutes....and you let me know if there had been a rush, making ice tea, etc...all makes sense and I'm fine with that. My drink was just a vanilla latte - sorry I didn't put that in my first question.

It didn't ruin my day at all - and I didn't complain because I wasn't in a hurry at all- and I certainly don't want to ruin anyone else's day. I did watch the ladies behind the counter and its difficult to see whats going on, but there were really no drinks being made because I was the only person in the store and DT was empty.

I really just wondered if it would take 15 minutes to make a latte! Simple - geesh - you guys think everything is a slam on you!

At any rate - I read about you all - and I wish I had some of the great barista's that you all are, but the store I go to has terrible service - always - every time I'm there!!! And I am one of the friendliest customers you'd ever encounter!

I wish one of you could come and work there so service was more of a focus or that maybe these baristas would acknowledge a hello once in a while!

[John]

We have had times in our store where the barista ringing up the transaction will forget to mark a cup or they assume the person at the bar heard the order. The drink never gets made, and the customer just waits there until someone realizes they've been standing there for a while. Especially when it's slow, you start chatting with the other baristas and sometimes don't notice someone waiting at the bar. It's not right but it happens.

I don't know the details of your situation. Assuming it was an honest mistake, someone would have made it for you right away if you asked about the drink.

[Keeping the Core]

DECAF DRINKER-
First, I apologize that you waited so long for your drink this morning. No, making a vanilla latte should not have taken nearly that long. Maybe there was a equipment issue, maybe your order was dropped, maybe???? No way for any of us here to know, because the partners who served you today either did not notice it took so long or did not care enough to share with you why there was a delay.
Thank you for caring enough to ask the question in any forum.

Regardless of the situation, waiting 15 minutes for a beverage is HORRIBLE customer service.

I mean, and there wasn't much information to go one, but since the customer's always right, was there communication about the wait time if the store was out of something? If not, there should have been. If there was, then at least that's something, but it's still a my-bad on SBUX part.

(Frankly, being out of something that you have on-hand but just needs to be prepared is ridiculous. I mean, I cannot tell you how many times I've gone into a SBUX and am told they are out of drip coffee! If you only had 2 or so pots avaliable to brew in, then that's somewhat excusable, but not wholly. Yet, this store had three brewers and three spare pots. It's just horrible customer service at this point.)

Anyway, regardless of the situation, SBUX was at fault here. The customer is always right and the store always wrong. That's how it goes.

How disappointing, honestly. But, SBUX seems to always be full of disappointment to its customers on a regular basis these days.

[Chris]

PETA should clean up it's own act before it lectures others.

[Vicki Verona]

Don't mean to sound like a Negative Nancy, but I think a way better topic to kick off this weekend is Howard's Bean Sales Incentive Challenge....

We haven't had a company wide contest like this in a very very long time. I also think its great that Howard is trying to stay connected with us because under Jim, I felt so disconnected from the senior leadership team.

[Eye On Barista]

Cute baristas! Does your store have one? Give them some props here. Who is it? What store?

[.]

Starbucks needs to start by treating its partners humanely. How are the terminations going? How many were axed this week?

Great point Vicki!

Why doesn't the WM offer something like that as a starter at least once in a while?

Long tenured partner here and I share your excitement on re-engaging, thx!

[Melody]

LOL. I tried to post about the excitement of the Clover Coffee machine at Starbucks but it was overlooked in the frenzy of a long wait at the DT. (see my post way above).greenapronbook.com

[michigan]

has anyone else tried the honey syrup that just arrived in our Seattle order today?? I think it is ridiculous to have this "naturally & artificially flavored" new syrup when you could actually add REAL HONEY (my emphasis) if anyone wanted it in a latte; but I guess that's what the r&d people do, come up with new drinks, I use that term loosely
don't even get me started on the leprechaun latte promotion coming up...

Does the honey syrup have "high fructose corn syrup in it?

Thanks!

[BroylingWaterBurns]

Michigan, real honey usually comes in those small packets, and that is really labor intensive(Opening the packets, squeezing, whatnot), and so on, not to mention a little unsanitary and whatnot, because of the fact that Honey is sticky, really, really sticky..That means you would have to wash your hands after almost every single drink, which would probably slow down turnaround time. Now, if you had honey in a huge bottle, with a pump on it, that would make sense, but honey is IMO a little bit stickier than Pumpkin Spice, or even Dulce De Leche, so who knows how the pumps would work in those situations..And, I've always noticed that honey is one of the most subjective things that we can add to drinks..Notice that no one ever wants the same amount of honey in their teas, and whatnot? I can have 8 people ask for honey during a shift, and I will get 8 different numbers, so imagine that with a latte..How would you set up a baseline recipe, with regular honey? Therefore, having a syrup, that tastes like the real thing, but isn't as thick, and is easier to make a recipe for, is just a lot easier on everyone.

And, on PETA. I'm sick of their crap. I'm all for animal rights, but a lot of those tree hugging hippies really need to take a class in the political process, and how to create real change. I hate to tell you, but our species didn't spend our whole time on this planet climbing the food chain, to just end up vegetarians. Blackmailing companies really annoys the people involved, and it just shows that they have no grasp of simple politics, or even business..I wish Schultz and Co would show some balls, and tell those twirps that we will run our company our way, and we won't, and refuse to let some outside organization tell us how we should be run. We have done a lot for the animal rights lobby, but we are our own entity.

[Drive, He Said]

JIM WEBMASTER, you are confusing warm and cold sandwiches.

Warm sandwiches will be eliminated. Those include egg, bacon, sausage and assorted breakfasty things. They come frozen and are warmed in those horrid ovens.

Cold sandwiches will not be eliminated. Those are in the refrigerated pastry case, along with the salads, fruit salad, bottled drinks, etc. They usually include some kind of chicken sandwich, like a chicken club or chicken tarragon. There is also a turkey and stuffing sandwich for Thanksgiving.

So if Starbucks is eliminating the warm sandwiches, that does not mean they are eliminating the cold sandwiches, which are a totally different animal.

[SoCalSnowBunny]

I'd love to hear updates on how the bean sale is going in other stores. I was in my neighborhood store today, and let me tell you they are planning on winning this challenge!!! I even bought a few extra pounds myself because they were so knowledgable!! Any other stores having fun with this? Any best practices to share?

I have a question about Starbucks' Just Say Yes policy...

As I understand it, it basically says that the barista is empowered to do whatever it reasonably takes to make a customer happy.

Yet, baristas have been going on and on about how JSY is subjective and how they will not implement the principle because of certain situations.

For example, the $1 short drips at the test stores. As far as I know, Starbucks came out and said if a customer knew of the test promotion, the barista should give the customer the deal. Then, baristas are turning around saying that the JSY policy is used to make customers happy, but JSY be damned they won't give the $1 shorts to customers, even at the direction of upper management.

I don't get it. JSY is there to make a customer happy, but some baristas won't follow the rule. I can't imagine Starbucks would treat a barista very well if they have this policy and the employee won't honor it.

So, my question: if JSY is there to make customers happy, even in unusual but reasonable request situations, is the barista truly doing their job well if they refuse to implement JSY? Also, it seems some customers know of the JSY policy; are they utilizing it directly by name to get what they want?

Personally, I think that if a company has Policy X and Employee A won't follow the policies set in place, regardless of the situation reasonably, they shouldn't be an employee. It's as simple as when someone's not doing their job, they should be let go. It's poor customer service.

The JSY policy is so subjective - and it's left up to the barista to decide what reasonable is. Like, for instance, somebody comes to you and says "my drink tastes funny and I don't think it's right... can you make me another one?" ABSOLUTELY. JUST SAY YES.

Scenario 2: A customer comes to you and says "my drink tasted funny - I want a new one," as they hold out a frappuccino cup that is empty except some whipped cream at the bottom. This is a situation that could go both ways. It would be obvious that the person drank it all and just wants a free one. This is not something that you should bend over backwards about just because a customer wants it to happen - obviously they're trying to rip us off. However, if the customer is pushy and insists, there's little you can do but say yes to avoid a scene. If they came to you with a full frapp minus the sips they took to determine it was not right, that's a different story.

Scenario 3: A customer walks in the door right at opening at 5:30 am with a cup that is brown, wrinkled, and clearly from the day (or several days) before and wants a refill. That goes against policy and is not a just say yes situation. Just say yes is not a magic policy that gets customers anything they want, however, it should not be blatantly ignored by baristas. That is why it would be hard to say "this barista isn't following the policy." It's SO subjective, and you yourself said the word REASONABLY. It's up to the employees to decide what is reasonable because, let's face it, some customer demands are NOT reasonable.

[Nerfebarista]

I think that guy was just upset that he got shut down going to a store for is $1 coffee. It's a JSY situation because they told us to be nice to you about it, but I have yet to sell a dollar drip because my store does not offer it.

I get a couple of questions about it but no one is pushy so its no big deal yet.

[Nerfebarista]

"We certainly do not want to add to your woes, but I thought it was only fair to let you know in advance that we are eager for Starbucks to make some real progress on this issue and intend to publicly pressure you if we don't see that happen soon. If you make progress, perhaps we could even get you some much-needed positive publicity"

Matt Prescott, Assistant Director
Corporate Affairs

I don't know who this dude thinks he is threatening (blackmailing) the head of a corporation that could pay to have him 'erased' from existance.

Chikins or no chikinz.. this dude is gettin hate mail from me!

[.]

Publicity is what it's all about. Groups like PETA, Oxfam and Fairtrade specifically target Starbucks and other high profile companies because it will make the news. I talked to some of the Fairtrade "protestors" outside the shareholders meeting a few years ago and they admitted that they know Starbucks is one of the leaders in paying farmers premium prices, but "this is where the media is".

You all are delusional if you think Starbucks could do anything to PETA.

PETA's went after pretty much anyone they want to for exploiting animals, and has never gone down.

ALL companies know this, even the precious bux. Thats why they agreed in the first place to look at CAK.

[I. Am. Legendary.]

Regarding the original topic...

In THIS case, PETA has a completely valid cause. The meat industry really is F&@!ed up right now... the way that most meat processors are killing animals is COMPLETELY inhumane. I could describe to you the most effecient and widely used methods of killing animals, so as to push 240 pigs through an assembly line in an hour, and even more chickens.

Starbucks, and other companies, should support meat processors that raise and kill their animals in a more humane way.

Now onto the fun topic... BEAN SALES!!

My store is getting REALLY into this. We are a high volume drive thru that normally does VERY little whole bean sales. The store is only a year and a half old, so we don't have to improve much from the past.

We almost always have people coming through the drive thru, so we're asking EVERY customer if they want freshly ground beans right through the drive thru. Most say no, but a high number say yes... and its easy to see how if we push the right items, we can increase sales BIG TIME.

I showed up at 5:00am opening and when I left at 12:00, we had sold 20 pounds... of which only one woman actually came to the window to buy a pound of French Roast. The other 19 were upsells. That's an extra $200+ in sales.

This contest is about the biggest IMPROVEMENT from before. With this kind of improvement, we got this in the bag!!

How are your stores doing in the contest? What strategies are you using to sell beans? Remember, we ARE a team, even though this is competitive. I want to see this bean buying week be a huge success. This week is the turning point where a lot of people will be turned on to coffee again!!!

Hoooraayy for Howie!!

[harmaa]

Go PETA!

[CP]

People Eating Tasty Animals

I love animals. I believe in treating them as the living breathing creatures that they are.

But PETA is a group filled with a bunch of misinformed radicals fighting for a cause that makes them feel superior to the rest of the world because they're "making a difference". Please. Take time and fix your own community. Lay off the circus (which, by the way, treats its' animals better than the human performers) and find a problem that *actually* needs fixing.

[b]

I just found out three Boston Starbucks will feature Clover Coffe Brewers Launching Feb 11th. Im not sure about the other two locations, but the Beacon Hill location (Charles and Beacon) will be having a Clover tasting event before thier official launch Feb 8th from 3:30 to 5:30. Ive trecked out to JP to check this machine out at Velouria Espresso and it was impressive...cant wait to see if Starbucks coffees can stand up to the perfect extraction this machine offers. The barista at the Beacon Hill store said they would be offering some rare coffee roasted specifically for Starbucks with clovers, including Aged Sumatra, Kona, and Ethiopia Shakisso

[sbuxnewbie]

I'm a tree hugger. I support environmental causes.

That being said, PETA, the Earth First movement, the Animal Liberation Front, and several similar groups are ridiculous in the extreme.

ALF is little more than a domestic terrorist group, and the Earth Firsters are often over-zealous in the presentation of their ideology (for example, the driving of nails into trees to prevent logging, resulting in the deaths of several lumberjacks) Both groups sprang from the more radical elements of PETA.

I'm all for ethical treatment of animals - I prefer to purchase my food from farms where I can see the critters running around, and pick out the one I want in my freezer - but I agree, those who present their demands/threats in a media circus should get far less respect from me than those who approach a company, offering to work with them to achieve a positive response.

I look at PETA and the NRA as two perfect examples of the Blind Squirrel Theory: Even a Blind Squirrel gets and acron every now and again.

[.]

I heard from one of my contacts in Coffee & Tea Education that one of our next Black Apron Exclusives is a Kopi Luwak blend.

Anyone else have information about this?

[tall is small]

I agree with Vicky, let talk about the whole bean incentive. Our store is so excited and selling their hearts out.
Any great practices to sell more WB's besides suggestive selling.

tall is small-

dah haha, like people will give you tips. ;P All I can say is my store is pulling out all the stops.

[Kate]

I'm confused about the whole sandwiches thing; we have a notice in the back that we are NOT discontinuing warm sandwiches, but just no longer displaying them in the pastry case. We do not have cold sandwiches, and our warm sandwiches (which are breakfast AND lunch sandwiches) come from the local bakery that does our croissants, scones, muffins, etc. every morning. They are refrigerated, not frozen.

Does anybody else out there work at a Hawaii Starbucks? Do you know what's up?

Kopi Luwak Blend? What % is the blend? Kopi Luwak is one of the most expensive coffee's in the world. I can't imagine the blend would be high enough to make it worth the crazy price they will no doubt be asking for it.

Kopi Luwak? In certian parts of the world, they call that Palm Civit shit, here, we pay $100 a pound plus for it.

to: 4:05.
You obviously don't know much.
I wish I lived in some false world where exploitation (of humans or animals) didn't exist.

It's all interconnected, get a clue.
And I'm sure the elephants and the humans that came out against Ringling and others that you can see being beaten or exploited in videos would love to see the world that way too..

[biscotti fiend]

off topic, but since it's an open thread, i'll put it out there...

i've noticed that there isn't much (if any) discussion of biscottis on this board. i personally love them, but i get the sense that i'm in the minority. but a biscotti with a foamy capp... mmmmm...

[Kittymoose]

Wow. My store is so awesome! We don't even know about the bean competition. We were not told.

Not that we'd expect to win or anything. We don't even order bags of beans. Mall store = no real coffee sales. Its all frappuchinos and iced teas.

[Melody]

biscotti fiend,
I'm not much of a drinker of any of the Starbucks drinks with a lot of hot milk (I do Americanos often, or drip coffee or the hot apple ciders) but I too enjoy a nice biscotti.
There are SO many things we could talk about other than PETA but that seems to be captivating this thread, given that it was the themed topic.
I can remember when the pastry cabinet had almost nothing in it other than butterhorns, bagels, and biscotti. (I can remember before there was such a thing as a frappaccino.)

starbucks is getting clovers?

baffling. no amount of money and technology can make over-roasted stale beans taste good, and yet, they seem to think this magically will.

such a waste.

maybe they should invest in creating decent beans, then invest in decent espresso machines to make use them with, then invest in training their employees before they get clovers.

all this is going to do is take a really cool technology and downgrade it. no one will want to use a clover once starbucks has them.

[Keeping the Core]

Melody-

I had Sanani from a Clover at a Starbucks and it was the BEAUTIFUL! I have had coffee from a Clover at two ohter coffee shops in LA and the Sanani was really impressive.

[Vicki Verona]

Clover espresso machines? Does anyone want to educate me on that initiative? Is this another test were doing? Any west coast stores getting it?

DO TELL DO TELL! I loved the coffee I got from the Clover at Intelligentsia

Kopi Luwak is so expensive because it has to be picked up by hand from inside the poop of the Civet-then the poop has to be washed off so the beans can be roasted...YUMMMMMM! I've never had it but THEY say it's GREAT!
I guess stranger things have happened, but it's pretty out there! :)

PS what's a Clover???

Does anyone have any sound evidence to our method of packaging meats? Has anyone ever been a witness to the slaughtering? Has anyone slaughtered a chicken for Starbucks? Peta is full of it, haven't they been known for burning down a few companies? Is life not about survival of the fittest? Of course it is not nice to bash poor Mr. Chicken over the head and make fun of him before we eat him, however sharks and crocodiles don't cradle their prey before they eat them...

Just food for thought, don't mind my input. I just don't adhere to this nonsense. How do you politely slaughter an animal? You can't euthanize it or run painless chemicals through it, that's another way foodborne illness is spread. So, how do you suggest, politely taking an axe to an animal's neck, being that it is one of the chemical free ways of preparing an animal for food?

Seriously, is there any other way to slaughter an animal without hurting it or its feelings? Is there???

[flaubert]

http://cloverequipment.com/

[Zipy]

this whole bean incentive, where the heck do you guys get it from? I can't find anything about it on the the portal -- have never even heard about it before.

[Melody]

AFAIK, there are only 2 Starbucks stores w/ Clover coffee machines - both in Seattle. It truly makes the best cup of coffee ever, imho. The beans avail for your cup of coffee are unique. i tried Shakissa coffee.

3 stores in Boston launch the 11th and 1 store in Seatle on the 11th (I think) 2 stores in Seatle (Queen Anne being 1) have been clovering since Nov. Its a test, but I think its a test in the right direction, if we really want to get back to coffee this is the future.

As a customer, even we know about it, Zipy!

I was in a Starbucks today and on their menu board it had something along the lines of: "Help us win a coffee tasting (or whatever) with Howard!"...

It was neat. I bought a pound of decaf Verona and a pound of Casi Celo to help out.

My office buys at least 20 pounds a week for the machines there (we have the ones that grind whole beans and automagically make a cup of coffee in about a minute) and we'll hit up our fav store so we can help them out.

This is the SBUX I grew up to love.

[Zipy]

I gotta know where this bean incentive thing is! I want in on it! >_<

[Zipy]

Maybe it aint company wide -- none of the stores around here have gotten any signage about that -- infact the friends i have in the stores in the area have no clue about this either.

[Zipy]

Kinda stinks. If I could find any real info on this, i'd be selling boxes of coffee! :( or well, trying to..Seem to never find out about this in my district until its far over. Guess I should talk to my DM about it.

[Vicki Verona]

For those who want more info on the incentive, ask your SMs to play Howard's voicemail for you. He also sent out an e-mail to all SMs so check there as well.

To clarify, the incentive is for RETAIL NORTH AMERICA COMPANY OWNED STORES ONLY.

[Vicki Verona]

For those who want more info on the incentive, ask your SMs to play Howard's voicemail for you. He also sent out an e-mail to all SMs so check there as well.

To clarify, the incentive is for RETAIL NORTH AMERICA COMPANY OWNED STORES ONLY.

[Kate]

On Maui, the incentive for whole-bean sales is iPod touches for every partner in the store-- woohoo!

[SF mocha stains everything]

So here's the deal with the whole bean incentive...
Every company operated US store is invited to participate. There will be two prizes, or rather, the same prize, but one for 7day a week stores and one for 5day a week stores. The stores selling the most whole bean in a week period starting today and through this following sunday over the average weekly bean sales for january will win a tasting with howard and every partner in the store will recieve an ipod touch! this was only in voicemail and email, not a normal portal announcement.

[Mike]

The Whole Bean USD challenge was at first put out as a VM to all store managers. It was then cc'd to all SSC. It was my day off and literally within an hour my phone was blowing up. As of yesterday there was no official word on the portal. I am sure though that when I go in on Monday for admin there will be something about it. Apparently many DM's were already communicating with their teams.

I have to say that I was excited to hear about Howard's return, and then his new announcement, but am just blown away by this contest. When have you ever heard of a CEO that throws out a challenge like this and who will show up and hand out iPod touches?

GO HOWARD!

Regarding Howard's whole bean challege:

An alert was posted on Friday on the portal for all stores to check their voicemail...on the voicemail, Howard explained the whole bean incentive contest...tell your SM, ASM, or whoever is allowed to check voicemail to listen and find out all about it...but it started today (Saturday) so if you don't know you're already a day behind. Goodluck!

[Zipy]

Damn! Of course it was just when the manager goes on vacation that this happens. Meh. Time to start selling!

re: WB challenge - the text to the voicemail is on the homepage on the portal. we're SUPER excited about it, and working to benefit a good cause, regardless of whether we win. we're a newer store, so this is a great team-building exercise!

i love howard. this kind of old school contest is so frickin awesome! what a way to bring partners and customers together over what we do best. :)

DECAFDRINKER - i'm a SM, and if one of my customers waited 15 minutes for a drink and no one explained why to them, i would hope they would call me and politely explain what happened. that way i can make my partners aware of what happened and coach them accordingly and let them know that that's not okay and rectify the situation.

re: JSY with $1 drip - we DID in fact receive directives from seattle to honor the $1 coffee if a customer requests it. this is a reasonable request for JSY. if you find a store making a stink about $.50, again, i'd call the SM or DM. there's right and wrong, and a lot of times, the SM and DM don't know their people aren't honoring it until someone's willing to tell them.

this company has a history of being a company that does the right thing b/c it's the right thing to do. it's gotten away from that, and i'm hoping, and trusting, howard leads us back to that. until then, we definitely need help keeping everyone accountable to having integrity when it comes to taking care of partners and customers.

ANFSCD.

I was reading an article in the Seattle Times in which La Marzocco was described as "the Seattle company that supplied Starbucks' espresso makers before the chain switched to automated machines".

Was La Marzocco ever a "Seattle-based" company?

[Bladerunner]

I just want my meat raised without weird chemicals, and hormonal crap, so it doesn't kill me later. And that may in some weird way make the animals life better too.

as a canadian partner, i think it's completely lame that there's a whole bean incentive in the states but not in canada. we work just as hard, do just as well.. hell, my store is less than a half hour drive from the border. where's my freaking ipod touch?

this is coming from someone who worked an 8 hour shift today.. two days after having surgery.. and sold 12 pounds of whole bean.

SHOW SOME LOVE TO THE CANADIANS, HOWARD.

[Decaf Drinker]

Thank you all for your responses. To the person above who is an SM- thanks for your input. When my drink was called and I stepped up to get it, the barista handing it to me didn't say a word - I said "thank you, have a great day" - like I always do. Pls know that these customer service issues are limited to this one store only. Any other time I go to a different location - the staff is wonderful!

I think after reading all this, I may just simply switch my SBux location......then I can help contribute to helping some great barista's win the bean contest!

Regarding:
To clarify, the incentive is for RETAIL NORTH AMERICA COMPANY OWNED STORES ONLY.
and

as a canadian partner, i think it's completely lame that there's a whole bean incentive in the states but not in canada. we work just as hard, do just as well.. hell, my store is less than a half hour drive from the border. where's my freaking ipod touch?

this is coming from someone who worked an 8 hour shift today.. two days after having surgery.. and sold 12 pounds of whole bean.

SHOW SOME LOVE TO THE CANADIANS, HOWARD.

Canada's in North America, no?

[Vicki Verona]

^ Retail North America includes you Canucks :)

[Zipy]

Found it! Hah, what a pain -- of course this is the week my manager went on vacation! Curse him. Oh well, time to sell boxes of coffee!

[ledog3]

Anytime PETA shows up in the news it affects me the same way that Al Sharpton and Brittney Spears does. I don't care what the hell they say and what they say should matter to no one. Give me some sound fundamental logic and a spokesperson or organization to go with it and then you might have me. Eccentrics like PETA, Earth First and others like them can stuff it. I may support the cause, just not those pushing it up our backsides. As far as the egg mcmuffins dissapearing ffom SBX, good riddance. Bubbye. I actually kind of liked them but grew tired of all the SBX (using the term very loosely here) "partners" constantly complaining and whimpering about all the work it took to make those little devils. It was tough job no doubt. Take it out of the refer, put it in a microwave and zap it. Lot of work to do in 60 seconds. Howard's reason about the smell is just B.S. He got tired of hearing the complaints too so thats just what he came up with to axe the program..

[goinkrazy6215]

what is everyone doing to sell more whole bean coffee?

im surprised everyone isnt talking about that.
top 2 stores get an itouch?!
a coffee tasting held by howard...

we sold 3x's our average yesterday just because we advertised it more....

what are your stores doing?

[Sbuxnewbie]

The Retail North American Company-owned Stores do NOT include Canadian stores!

Starbucks Canada is a completely different company, due to Canadian laws on Foreign ownership.

That's why the Canadian partners can't get the discount here in the states, and why those of us here can't get partner discounts in Canada.

But hang Tough, mes amis! Peut être Howard will do a similar challenge in Canada.

Didn't the announcement say US stores only?
Considering *$ was in Vancouver LONG before it was in most of the US I bet Howard WILL do something for the Canadian Partners!

[Dee]

wow... way to steal graphics from www.nataliedee.com without even giving the slightest bit of credit to her.

Which graphics???

[Mark Harris]

Most decent folks would be appalled at the brutal and inhumane treatment of many of the animals that we raise and slaughter for food consumption.

Actually, most people would rather not know the gruesome details, so we tend to overlook the uncomfortable.

But the cruelty and suffering that these animals undergo is unnecessary. For example, Kosher practices have prescribed the humane treatment of animals for centuries. Many of the attributes of Kosher food preparation as it pertains to the raising and slaughter of the animals have mostly to do with the humane treatment of animals to qualify as Kosher.

However decent the cause, for me, the tactics and practices of PETA are annoying, repugnant and obnoxious, which simply tends to turn people away and significantly undermine sympathy and support for their campaigns.

When you're the big deal like Starbucks, I guess that draws the attention and the focus. I suppose a lot of turkey sandwiches do move through Starbucks each day, but apparently not for much longer.

Mark

lol. We've been having some fun with the "test" screen at our store. A lot of our partners don't know about it and we have a labeler since we're drive thru. I like randomly hitting the "Leprechaun Latte" button and sending it over to bar to print...watching the bar person's face is priceless!

[ristretto caramel macciato]

The store that I worked at until a couple of weeks ago sold 150% of their weekly average in one day (yesterday) - I am so proud.

Sbuxnewbie,
I'm pretty sure that Canadian partners DO get their discount in the US. Although I could be wrong, but I could swear I've given it before...

[roy]

PETA, give me a break!!! If they were truly concerned about the turkey and the chicken why don't they not eat meat. Eating meat means killing an animal - and that means blood and guts. How many PETA people have ever had to kill or harvest their own food? Rejoin the rest of us on planet Earth.

As for the rest...I go to Starbucks for a good "tripple shot moccha" - not food. When the focus moves from that to "other" products I am history.

[I. Am. Legendary.]

Roy....

Killing an animal is different than creating, hormoning, enslaving, trapping, and EXTREMELY PAINFULLY killing these animals so that it is an efficient process.

Plenty of meat eaters such as myself eat meat for health benefits, but don't want to support an industry that can't provide these nutrients in a humane way (the way they treat their workers isn't pretty either). There's alternatives to this industry, including kosher and organic lines. I avoid fast food because of the way they raise/kill their animals... oh and last I heard it's pretty bad for you too.

And again.... BEAN SALES!!!...

Ok, I'll just tell you guys right now, stores doing 3x their average in bean sales... my store laughs at you. We are EASILY doing 10-15x our normal whole bean sales so far this week, if not higher. It helps that I opened the first two days of the contest and got everybody at the store motivated to win right from the getgo.

Oh, and my manager is going to run around to all the local businesses, asking if they want to buy some coffee for their employees. I'm not sure how he's been doing with this, but he is dedicated to winning!!

Howie... make sure when you send me my ipod, that it's bubble wrapped!! I love popping the bubbles!!

[ledog3]

Oh puhleeeze! Those of you who claim to support humane animal treatment please dont talk with your mouth full. Its way to easy to be a hippocrite. An animal killed for food is killed. Its not coaxed into a room and gently put to sleep then gutted for its "nutritional value". Cows, pigs, chickens. They all get it in the end. Humane killing...? Doesnt exist my friend. Animals don't come into the world covered in saran wrap packaging any more than people do.

[.]

What does PETA think about Kopi Luwak harvesting?

Do they have a "Protect the 4th Amendment Rights of Palm Civets!!" campaign?

I can't wait for the Kopi Luwak Black Apron! It will taste PHENOMENAL on the Clover.

[Italiano]

Biscotto=singular
Biscotti=plural

[Barstar]

This happened to me again today (it happens qute a bit) and I have to say something: The tip jar is not a change jar, it is not available to you if you don't want to break a 20. Not only is it a security issue (I'm not supposed to touch the tips to give anyone change no matter what), but it's just arrogant to assume that this is fine. I'm serving you coffee and giving you good service, please don't use the tips as an extension of your wallet.

[ex-sbuxmanager]

Sbuxnewbie -

I think that Starbucks is only a separate company in Quebec. The rest of Canada is part of Retail North America.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that only Quebec has the law that a foreign company must be partially owned by a Quebecois.

a friend of mine accually worked at a slaughter house. THe animals are "dispatched" very VERY quickly. In the intreast of time, they need to kill them very quickly, so they can start processing them. All this, animals are made to suffer, and killed in inhuman ways, doesn't make sense from a production stand point. It is in the best intreast of the meat packing plant to make sure they are killed quickly, plan and simple. They do not suffer.

[missingmybux]

The just say can't crowd.

I am mormally quite happy with my interactions at Starbucks but the latest transaction has left me more than a little peeved.

On Friday I reloaded my sbux card from my debit card. The transaction was basically normal except that the barrista decided to "start over" because he wasn't sure whether the drink that I ordered was in addition to the reload or part of it and reswiped the debit card.

When I checked the day's transactions with the bank I found that I had been charged twice...over $100 in total.

I stopped by the store and talked to the barrista on duty. He was helpful in finding the problem but couldn't fix it. I would need to talk to the manager in the morning.

Saturday morning I stopped by and took it up with the manager. He was aware of the problem but said that he had no way to process a refund thru the register. He gave me a customer service number to call.

I called this morning. The service rep took a bunch of info, opened a case and said that I should get a refund in two weeks. Not great but ok.

The rep called back later and left voicemail that I should dispute the charge with my bank. That would be the easiest way to get my money refunded.

I own part of this because, while I reviewed the receipts, I didn't keep them. Things looked ok.

Where I am peeved is that I believe that the store manager should have taken more ownership than just handing me a piece of paper with a phone number on it. I would agree that the barrista would be unable to process it on his own and that I have no reason to expect that the customer service line cannot provide an instant refund. I do expect that the store manager should be able to do the refund. Why is it so easy to take money out of my account and yet impossible to put it back? Why does correcting a error require me to do all of the work?

It seems that all I get from everyone is, "I can't."

I was excited about the bean sales incentive until I found out that my boyfriend's store sold 120 pounds of coffee the first day of the promotion ... for a store that usually sells about 20 pounds of coffee a week. What is that, 600%?

[Seven]

Missingmybux... The manager helped you the best they could. We have no ways to process refunds on SBUX cards.

[missingmybux]

Seven,

I'm not looking for a refund on my sbux card, I am looking for a refund to my debit card. I would also accept a credit to my sbux card to reflect the actual amount that was deducted or any reasonable solution that leaves me with an appropriate balance between what I paid for and what I received.

Again, my peeve is that a problem that was pretty easy for the barrista to create cannot be corrected in the store or by customer service and that I am expected to fix it on my own with the bank.

[ex-sbuxmanager]

Missingmysbux -

Are you saying that you got charged for $200 but only got $100 on your sbux card?

That doesn't seem right. Go to starbucks .com and check the balance on your sbux card. Maybe you actually got what you paid for.

Unfortunately though, the store manager can only void the transaction on the day in question or the next day. After that, the computer system that sbux has won't let anyone process changes on any transactions. For transactions involving sbux cards, the computer never allows refunds for purchases of sbux cards.

[sbuxnewbie]

Check the portal - Howard left another voice mail.

It seems that some stores didn't get the voice mail, or said that they didn't, and wanted the contest extended - so Howard said that he thought that was fair.

The bean contest now runs to February 17, and instead of using the average bean sales for January, will use "two weeks of bean sales for January" as the comparison point.

That sucks.

if the SM didn't get the voice mail or email, it is the DM's job to make sure that the message gets through. Our store got email from the RDO and DM, as well as a telephone call from the DM within minutes of Howard's Voice mail.

We kicked into high gear, and have been selling our butts off.

Of course, Howard's latest message also assumes that we're working hard to try and win the i-touch, and says that, as this is an internal contest, we are not to discuss it with customers.

Most of our partners are more jazzed 9to use Howard's terminology) about the possibility of his coming to visit a tiny store in a very small district than we are about a silly little piece of electronics (that I personally wouldn't use, anyway.)

And as we had 3 average weeks and one week with twice average sales in January, now we really want to know what weeks will count - and why hasn't anyone told us? (This includes the DM, btw)

One other issue in the voice mail: Howard was specific about no longer running shots into the paper cups, but to use the shot glasses only. While that is all well and good, the BRM (the final arbiter, or bible of all beverages Starbuckian)says to "pour the shots into the paper cup or a shot glass". That is how we train people, and that is what we tell them to read, if they are unclear on an issue.

If Howard is changing that, even if it is simply to return us to our roots, that is fine - but a replacement page for the BRM needs to be sent to all of the stores, ASAP.

Yuck, the honey lattes and fraps are gross.

What say you.

[missingmybux]

Ex-sbuxmanager,

Close... I was adding $50 plus a drink for a total of about $53. Two $53 transactions went against my debit card or $106.

I went in that night but it was after the mgr left. I accept without question that the barrista couldn't fix that on his own. He has been the only person that has really helped so far, however.

I went in the next morning and talked to the manager. All he did was give me the customer service number.

I have checked the card, only one of the $53 transactions was credited. Good idea though.

I agree that if I put money on a card, getting a refund without the card would be an invite to fraud. That would buy me off except for that fact that the money that I paid was never credited to the card and yes, I want it back in one form or another.

BTW. I am now up to 25 minutes on hold in line waiting to get someone to fix this on the bank's side. I know that isn't Sbux' problem.

[tall is small]

Missingmybux, The exact same happened to me at a local retailer. I bought a XBOX LIVE minutes card for my son for Christmas and was double charged. I noticed it 2 days later and called the retailer plus my bank (I even had my receipt). 2 1/2 weeks later I received my money but it was my bank that fixed the problem.
Hang in there, you'll get it straighten out.

[Vicki Verona]

Regarding the "pulling shots directly into shot glasses" comment. I would love it if that was made official. My DM and I always get into debates, she wants me to pull directly into hot cups and I like using shot glasses.

Are you sure Howard said that? I never got a voicemail saying he wanted that. Ill check my email again tomorrow though when I get into my store.

Please Clarify:
Was there a voice mail from Howard that told us to pull all shots into shot glasses???

HOW are we supposed to get back to basics if we can't even communicate something so simple???
I was trained the opposite, but will back anything that will get us closer to the core...
I'd hate to think that my SM would hold back a direct order form Howard...It's decisions like that that got us into this mess in the first place...
Ok, rant over...:)

[sbuxnewbie]

Check the portal, under "culture". The transcript of the voice mail is there.

We printed it out and posted it as an "all read".

So yes, back to shot glasses.

The BRM needs to be changed.

sbuxnewbie:
Thank you-I'll check it tomorrow. :)

Question for any SMs out there:

Would you consider it appropriate for someone in your store other than you to post this?
Since my SM either missed this or didnt post it on purpose, do I have to use my "leadership courage" and just post it anyway?
Any & all advice appreciated...

[BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL]

At my store, we aligned the contest with the Guiding Principles of Starbucks.

[redcup]

howard slams you sbux haters out there; yeah... we stand by what he knows to be true.

Anyway, regardless of the situation, SBUX was at fault here. The customer is always right and the store always wrong. That's how it goes.

Maybe in your world, but here in the real world the customer is NOT ALWAYS RIGHT

[miraena]

what i don't understand about the overcharged debit situation is why the store can't just swipe the sbux card again for the $53, and when the drawer opens looking for the payment, just slam the damn thing shut because obviously the store already received the funds from the debit card.
maybe it won't look perfect on paper, but the store KNOWS that it received the money, right? so why can't that just be balanced?
maybe i am just too naive. i've worked in so many retail stores, and i have always been in charge or cash/tills/etc, and i find it very easy to be in balance without computers doing all of the work.
maybe i am just misunderstanding, horribly? but i don't see this being any different than ordering a $5 drink, handing the barista a $20, which they mistake as a $10, and when they hand me back $5 change instead of $15, saying "oh, well...i can't do anything about it..."
maybe someone can enlighten me? i don't want to sound stupid. but the way i understand it, the customer was charged $106 for a $53 purchase. the money is not on the sbux card, and that means that the store gained $53 from a double charge...right? so why can't the store just slide a gift card for $53, and be done with the situation? the till might be short $53 that night, but when all is said and done for the week, it balances...right?
i'm confused. i just feeling really bad for the customer, i suppose. had that been my mistake, i probably would have given the customer the starbcuks card for $53 and dealt with the balance later, because when it comes down to it, it was the barista's (accidental) re-swiping that caused
the whole problem...right?

Regarding the double charge for the Starbucks card- Where I work, when the cashier voids a transaction and starts over, the customer's online statement will show TWO charges, because both charges were authorized. After a few business days, the charge that was held for the voided transaction disappears. Then the customer is only actually charged ONCE. No action is required on the customer's part.

Maybe that is what happened here?

[missingmybux]

Anon from this morning,

Bingo! Indeed, what looked like two transactions cleared as only one. Note to self... patience is a good thing. Remember, 60 days to dispute the charge.

Looking back, it appears that there needs to be some training at the SM level or below as to how the transactions are posted. A simple explaination at the time of the voided transaction that the transaction will appear online and then disappear at settlement would have saved me a bunch of hassle. It is, however, infrequent enough for the cure to be worse than the problem.

Thanks for the suggestions.

[ILeany]

I am excited about the prospect of honey lattes, too - can anyone comment on whether they contain high fructose corn syrup? I don't think anyone actually answered that...

And BroylingWaterBurns, honey comes in little packets becuase that's the way it's packaged. It's not like little honey packets grown on trees. The only reason they are in packets is because they're for single use. Just like sugar packets. I'm sure if the 'bucks were using real honey for a promo drink, they would not require you to use honey from a bunch of little packets. Although, I'd love to come watch if that ever did happen.

[Abe]

Do some Starbucks hire only lesbians? I ask this seriously. My local Starbucks, in Watertown, Ma., has enough butch women employees to start a rugby team. Would anyone else have a chance at employment? Or do these sorts of circumstances just develop on their own (like the old boys club of old)?

[Melody]

Since this is an open thread, I will post it here. I love Starbucks. It's the people there that are amazing.

I have *just* returned to my desk following a visit to the Starbucks in the Columbia Center in downtown Seattle. (Store #101).

I walked into that store (one of several downtown Seattle starbucks stores that I go to) and ordered a vanilla cupcake and a caramel apple spice drink. I head to the bar to pick up my drink and a nice young man looks like he practically wearing roller skates, doing 3 things at once. I watch as he is making shots, and opening up cabinets simultaneously, and after a few frantic minutes he looks up at me and says: "I'm sorry ma'am but we're out of apple juice."

"no! you can't be!!" I exclaimed.

"I can give you a service recovery coupon, and you can take it up to the 40th floor and get one there." (There is another Starbucks on the 40th floor of the same building).

"No, I don't work in this building actually. I walked over from 3rd and Yesler, so it's a pain to go up to the 40th floor."

"Ma'am, would you like a refund?"

(Somehow he is carrying on this conversation and continues to work at the same time).

"No. I really want a beverage. Would you make me something else?"

He smiles and says "Sure. I'd be happy to. Anything on the menu!"

I said, "Okay, how about a tall caramel frappuccino."

He said, "Okay no problem, but are you sure you wouldn't like a Venti?"

"No, no, no" I said, laughing quite a bit now. "If you insist, make it a grande, but I simply don't do a 'venti' anything. I remember when the menu was short, tall, and grande."

So he puts back on his rollerskates and flies over the blender and starts my drink, and lightning fast, comes back to the espresso machine and makes another beverage, and then goes back to the blender.

I'm watching him at the blender, and he pours my frap into a cup, puts the whip cream, on and he goes to squeeze on some caramel, but alas, the top to the plastic caramel container wasn't tightened on, and I look, and now the poor guy has a mess of caramel in numerous places that caramel doesn't belong. All I could think was, 'geeze, my drink has quickly become a pain in the ass.'

"Gosh. I guess my drink is cursed." I said, joking at him.

The young man just laughed, and quickly washed the caramel up from his hands, and remade the frap.

Second time around I said, "Can I get a little extra caramel on top?" (He must've been ready to kill me by this point).

God this young man was amazingly good natured, and he said "No problem, I can even put some in the cup!"

I said sure.

Within a minute I had an amazing caramel frappuccino with caramel in the cup (ohhh it was so good - I'm love with the caramel) and I walked out grinning from ear to ear.

I said, "you really worked your tail off for my drink." And he just smiled, and "no problem" in that 'all-in-a-day's-work' tone of voice.

I tipped $2 in the tip jar on the way out the door, and I left very happy.

That is why Starbucks is great.

[Ruby Doomsday]

Melody, customers like you make our job a blast! A lot of customers would have thrown a hissy fit if we were to run out of a key component of their favorite drink. It was good of you to roll with the punches and even have a bit of fun with the baristas along the way.

[Greg]

PETA is just too extreme.

As to losing the breakfast sandwiches, I'll miss them, we enjoyed them on occasion. The logic of substituting the donuts for them as a healthy alternative is flawed beyond reason. I do like the apple fritters, albeit they are bad for me!

the donuts aren't REPLACING the sandwhiches. We've had both for a long time.

Sandwhiched aren't gone until september.

[KJ]

Is it "allowable" for a barista to offer his/her markout as an incentive to a customer to buy coffee during this bean sale? Seems a bit sleazy to me, but I saw a guy tell a customer who was buying 2 pounds that "if you buy another I will give you my markout for free." I guess you can do anything you want with your coffee, but geeze...kinda tacky from a customer's point of view.

[Adrienne]

To the anon poster who said animals don't suffer:

Um, yeah they DO. I have BEEN to a meat packing plant, a couple in fact. Want to know what I saw?

I saw a woman take a chicken out of a wire cage, pulling its LEGS OFF in the process, then immediately, without killing it, throw it into a scalding bin to broil the feathers off.

It screamed the entire time. IF you would like, I can email you footage of this, and MANY MANY similar incidents. Don't fool yourself. Just because your friend didn't do it, doesn't mean it's not happening.

The minute I read this topic starter I submitted a mission review statement, and I suggest all of you to the same.

[sbuxnewbie]

KJ -

As long as the partner doesn't sell the markout, he/she can pretty much do what he/she wants to with it.

But yeah, that is kinda sleazy.

I bought lots of Christmas Blend in January, and have been giving it to friends, family, neighbors, etc.

I did have one customer ask on Sunday AM if we had any left, and I let him know that we were prohibited from selling it after January 22.

I did have a couple of bags in my car, and I'd give him one if he stopped by later, no strings attached.

When he came back, he said that he appreciated my giving him the free coffee, and wanted to buy one to reciprocate by buying another one. I repeated, no strings attached.

Then he bought two pounds.

I really do like my customers.

PETA is completely ridiculous. If most people understood their politics they would support the ASCPA instead.

[Jim]

The radio commercials... MAKE THEM STOP! The idiot girl talking about how she just discovered a skinny late, trying to talk like Paris Hilton... awful. I get depressed every time I hear it. Can Starbucks sink any lower? "Life happens over coffee" Are they serious with this crap?

[valdic]

look, guys, i've bought a great watch. is anybody hep and can say if it looks like original one?
[url=http://www.vacheronwatch.net/models.html][/url] http://www.vacheronwatch.net/models.html

[RonnieLRQ]

Hey everyone,

Been reading the forum for a while just wanted to introduce myself - what's up?

[RonnieLRQ]

Hey everyone,

Been reading the forum for a while just wanted to introduce myself - what's up?

[Kenquenehar]

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