How Starbucks is like filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan

Financial writer Rick Aristotle Munarriz says of the coffee company and the filmmaker: "They're no longer at the top of their game. They have fallen from greatness. Their pioneering ways have been diluted by copycats. Worst of all, they can no longer whip out a surprise ending that will throw the jaded market for an applause-worthy loop." (Read The Motley Fool article)

Comments

[Alex]

That article is kinda unfair- Starbucks is nowhere near as pretentious as Shyamalan. (And that should speak volumes about Shyamalan...)

[Ken]

I'm a huge Shyamalan fan, ( we have the same birthday as well!). I'm not a big Starbucks fan. I do think this was a fun way of making a point about Starbucks time in the spotlight being over. Like when Brittney preformed at the MTV music awards (wasn't it) when even the biggest Brit fans were like "yeah, she's done". I think Starbucks is getting to that point. It will never go away, it will always be one of the leaders. I think it is just going to have to happy with being "A" player in the coffee world, and not "the" player. There is nothing wrong with that, and as customers, we only benifit from it. I see nothing wrong with this.

[will]

The happening was terrible, but not nearly as bad as the village

[Sarah]

Any movie (*coughHappeningcough*) that pukes a pop culture message-of-the-week into the last 15 minutes instantly turns me off. Some of the dialogue was funny (although who the hell hired the leading actress?! UGH! horrible!) and there were a few jumpy good moments, but once they threw the "commentary" in at the end, it was done for me. Irritating.

[frenchpixie]

I think that Howard reading this site is detrimental to us all in that it removes a little bit the free rein that we have in talking about Sbux. The expectation of privacy that we have here is lowered when we know that the bigwigs at corporate are reading this...Anyway, the comparison betwen Shyamalan's films and Sbux is not very good. He made a couple movies that flopped before 'the sixth sense", and great film makers have their highs and lows like everyone else....

[jkh]

Frenchpixie:

Why are you afraid of voicing your opinion? Why do you care who reads this website?

[P.R.I.D.E.]

"The expectation of privacy that we have here is lowered when we know that the bigwigs at corporate are reading this"

I laughed out loud when I saw this post. Expectation of privacy? On a gossip blog site? You have GOT to be kidding me...

None of us expect that this site is a secret club for us all...in fact, I'm happy to hear they read it. It's probably a wise choice for them- they can tap into real time partner engagement.

[EMT]

SB's quality has not gone down THAT far (has anyone seen "The Happening"? :P)

Still, McDonald's is giving some good competition. The two things SB's has going for it vs. McD's are the specialty coffies with foamed milk, lattes, expresso etc., and lovely atmosphere. Makes you feel like you are rich for a half hour out of your day.

The prices are too high on those lattes etc. I do love the Mistos, good value but unfortunately no discount on refills.

I would suggest lowering prices on the really pricey stuff (even if only a dollar) and giving free refills on regular coffee in order to compete. Even lowering refills to 25 cents gives people a sense SB's is aware of the problems with economy due to rising cost of gas, and the goodwill that promotes can go a long way. IMHO :)

JMHO

[Alex]

Frenchpixie- it's been pretty widely assumed that corporate reads this blog for a couple years now... as long as we don't discuss confidential company stuff (or when we do, don't give identifying information...) we're groovy.

[P.R.I.D.E.]

Hey EMT, if you register for a Starbucks card and load a minimum of $5, you'll get free refills in store, free wifi for 2 hours, and you'll even receive occasional "thank you" emails and special promos from Starbucks corporate. You might want to check it out!

[Ken]

"Makes you feel like you are rich for a half hour out of your day."

Except for that fact that they took $7 for a drink and a muffin, I don't feel rich after that!

[Pat Nerr]

Hey Howard... Thanks for the reply on the info I gave you about your HR Leader... it tells me how important accountability is to you...

ooIo

Complimenti di Pat Nerr

[Argentius]

EMT --

There are free refils on drip coffee with a starbucks card.

There are deeply discounted refils for Mistos. If you haven't been given them, then your store is not training baristas properly.

Misto refills cost the price of a drip refil (either ~$0.50, or free,) and "add dairy," which is ~$0.40. So, at most, a dollar.

[Joe]

The Happening wasn't just the worst Shyamalan movie Ive seen; it ranks as one of the worst all time movies Ive seen.

At this point, he's completely in the tank; unable to keep his vanity and excesses from polluting his strengths.

The worst thing for Shyamalan is that The Happening actually had a decent opening at the box office which is sure to keep hope alive in his camp that he's really not as bad as his critics say.

Hmmmmm...maybe there ARE some apt comparisons between he and Starbucks...or maybe even Howard.

[wholahay]

Dear Pat,

You're the most important thing that ever happened to Starbucks. You're kind of a big deal. Hot Tranny Mess.

[Pat Nerr]

Thanks Hot Tranny Mess... That was the validation I needed

[Darleen]

Hey Howard... Thanks for the reply on the info I gave you about your HR Leader... it tells me how important accountability is to you...

Can you elaborate on this pat?

[P.R.I.D.E.]

Ohhh Darleen- you fell for Pat's trap! LOL

[Darleen]

HA! What can I say, it's early and I was without coffee. It figures, hehehehe.....

[Sheik]

WHY o why did everyone else hate "The Village?" I thought it was a pretty good film... Despite the 2 or 3 plot holes it had. Still a good movie!

[Herman M]

No, Joe. There are plenty worse. Fortunately many were made better by MST3K, but if you actually watch, say, Parts: The CLONUS Horror, you will be nominating The Happening for awards all day. Even the Parts remake The Island is worse. Not much, but worse.

[David]

I was shocked when he called McDonald's coffee "swill" has he tried that garbage called "pikes blend". I have switched to Peets for good.

[Drew]

Anybody know where to get one of those sweet starbucks cycling jerseys howard is wearing on the cover of the magazine????

[Don]

Well I sold my 1000 shares of Starbucks stock today, at a 14% loss. It was an interesting venture in buying low and selling even lower. Perhaps it was the just-announced plan to close 600 stores and to lay off 7% of the workforce--though some might perceive that as a good thing, showing management's seriousness about turning things around. In reality, though, it was the Starbucks' experience itself which convinced me to sell. I spend an awful lot of money and time at the place, but the investment hasn't been reciprocal. Things started heading south about 18 months ago, when my "favorite" Starbucks temporarily morphed into a training site for new employees. No problem there, but don't do it during the peak of the rush hour when the lines are running out the door! (A Fortune 200 CEO and devoted Starbucks' investor that I know was in the queue during one of these experiments in disaster and I'm pretty certain he started bailing out not long thereafter.)... Or it could be Starbucks' absolute refusal to change operating procedures. For example, how hard would it be to set up two lines at peak times (call it "peak operating mode")? Like one for basic beverages and the other for more complicated beverages (or as one Starbucks' customer once shouted in frustration: "Where's the line for drinks with less than 24 ingredients?!") My Starbucks is in probably one of the most affluent locations in the U.S. , so there are other choices--like the upscale food store in the same little mall that has fresh baked items and a nice cup of joe. I've gone there myself a few mornings when the line just didn't move--literally.... Or it could be the fact that Starbucks' website is perhaps the most user unfriendly site for a major retailer around. And that they never reply to inquiries or suggestions (like why can't they have a decaffeinated tea for my wife that isn't herbal? They have everything else!)... No, I think perhaps the final straw was my experience yesterday at 12:30 PM, returning from church. There was nobody in line and only one person waiting for a beverage. We both waited 10 minutes. I know because I timed it. And this was while the full-time manager, who recently graduated with an international MBA, was on duty. (I'll tell you, Missy, I wouldn't hire you for a global job, even if you were the last employee standing.) They didn't even start making my drink (a frap) until five minutes after I placed the order. What were they doing in the interim? No, the issue here is that Starbucks and their employees have taken their eyes off the customer. Now those customers--many who may also be shareholders--are doing likewise to Starbucks.