How is Free Pastry Day going at your Starbucks store?

Were customers without the coupon demanding free pastries? (Did you "Just Say Yes"?) Tells your Free Pastry Day stories here.

Comments

[Emily]

My local Starbucks didn't even ask for the coupon. They were just telling customers it was Free Pastry Day and asking which one they'd like.

[nike]

Didn't ask for coupon here, OFFERED the free pastry, most people didn't know it was going on. Hmm,

[LEGENDARY OR BUST]

Was this a Twitter Top 10 trend today like last year? Last time I checked was 6 am and it wasn't.

[Lori Milton]

The Starbucks in the Pearl district (Portland,OR) had tons of pastries, but said that you could choose ONLY between the lemon pound cake & coffee cake!! I'll go across the street to the competition!

[Barista Ben]

Last year we had a ton of waste so this year we were just telling everyone. As of 9 we went through a good portion - which makes me happy. No throwing out this year!

[pdxguy]

oh noes i only have a limited choice of stuff THAT I DONT HAVE TO PAY FOR! waaaah waaaah waaah...

also this is why EVERYONE in portland hates EVERYONE who lives in the pearl...

[40oz. Frapp]

Same here... everyone was simply offered a free pastry. We made it to 10:30am with just a few pieces of banana walnut bread left. Most customers were "surprised and delighted" to be offered a free pastry for no reason :)

I don't think the buzz was as great as last year... it was in the summer, perhaps that had something to do with it?

[baristaX]

@Lori Milton So now free isn't good enough for you? The promotion was limited to AM pastries. If the store ran out of all of the others, then you are left with few choices. Go to the competition. You seem like a customer that would be more trouble than you are worth.

My store had tons of stuff, and few people bringin in coupons. We ended up just asking people what they want, despite a 7 a.m. phone call from our DM telling us not to offer them.

[javagirl666]

We had given away almost 500 pastries by 10:30..the directive was that they didn't have to have a coupon..we still had a few people decline, but other than that everyone was very happy.

[Marcus]

I got there around 11:40 AM and said I knew I was late but thought I would ask anyhow about the free pastry deal (I had the coupon). They said it was impossible for the computer to process a free pastry past 10:30 AM—that's one strict computer! I was very polite and completely accepted that—I was just asking, not pushing. Anyhow, I went ahead and ordered my drink and a very berry coffee cake anyway, and he said, oh yeah I forgot to tell you the coffee cake is still free. And I asked why and he said that they had ordered way too much of it for the promotion. It was a bit odd in that they only had the coffee cake and some loaf in the case—it was 50/50 I was going to have asked for the coffee cake, so I'm not sure why he didn't mention it when I asked about the promo--but I guess he could have just forgotten like he said. So it turned out well! The pastry was very fresh!

[Smalrus]

Couldn't get free pastry at my usual store because I didn't have a coupon. Apparently having a Gold Card and being a known (by name) customer wasn't sufficient? I was quite miffed because I went out of way this am (my store isn't en driving route to campus), but there was no discretion on rule bending (especially since rules sound like they were bent in other stores)? Just kind of left a sour taste in my mouth.

[stown shifty]

Our store was DEAD this morning. We received a ton of pastries but we never got the rush we anticipated.

[heather fuentes]

they were just saying "free pastry day! what would you like?" at the store I went to and didn't care if people had a coupon or not.

They let me have a chocolate cupcake even tho I didn't see it on the list of OK'd items. yay!

[nycstoremanager]

I work in an office building and this morning was BRUTAL!!! I did my best to make the event fun for both partners and customers but with a permanent line out the front door for more than 3 hrs (no exaggeration- it was OUT THE DOOR) it was difficult to maintain the happy vibe but overall my team did a decent job...

Custies were so happy though...no typical rushing to get upstairs and they were in groups of 3-5 having a good time discussing what they would get...

Next year I will put 12 partners on instead of 10 though...

[Legendary or I am out of here]

What??? 10 partners??? Are you a Venti store?

[LV]

It went fine! Last time we had too many pastries left, threw so many away. This time we gave them to anyone who asked, coupon or no, and offered to all our regulars who hadn't heard about it. By the time I left, most of the pastries were gone, and the few kinds we ordered excess of were still being given for free even though it was past 10:30.

[Barista Ben]

Store's that refused to give you a free pastry or even a free item that wasn't part of the AM pastries weren't following what was sent to corporate and i apologize. Every other line in the barista need to know was basically "We aren't doing this, BUT - Just - Say - YES"

Shesh it's not like those pastries cost your store anything - odd's are a good portion of stores didn't go through the entire inventory before 10:30am.

[Barista Ben]

Excuse me, sent *from* corporate

[me myself and I]

Starbucks these days is Baristas not reading communication properly and lacking basic customer service skills as well as customers complaining about free pastries that are not exactly what they wanted... Next thing you know a special interest group will show up and complain our free pastry day (well, morning, to be exact) was bad for sugar plantation workers because they had to work overtime to produce all that sugar for the pastries and Starbucks should have known this and avoided it by taking a strong stance over it, just calling off the free pastry day, paying everyone double and riding on to serve the next interest group. ;-)

[ash_sk8s]

When I went in this morning I was told no coupon = no pastry. Seems stupid to me. If they're not requiring physical copies of the coupon (you could show it on your phone after all) seems that knowing about the promotion should get you a free pastry...

[mmmmm... sugar]

Next time they should have some signage for free pastry day (or any other mass give-aways) so that customers have time to think about what to get while they are still waiting in line. We had way too many pastries to only wait for people who knew about it or brought their coupons, so to not end up with tons of leftover pastries, we had to tell everyone when we were taking their order about it, and wait for them to choose etc. This took a lot of extra time. It would have been a bit easier if there were some nice big signs so people would have a chance to think about what to get before they ordered.

Also, to clear up what communications from corporate said to do and not to do:
-We WERE supposed to honor the discount for anyone who asked about it until 10:30 AM (or we run out of pastries)
-Stores could decide if they wanted to "surprise and delight" people who didn't know about the deal based on how many pastries they had left
-Stores could decide to honor the deal past 10:30 based on how many pastries they had left
-We were not supposed to display most PM pastries (except loaves, mainly) in the morning, but we WERE supposed to give them for free to those who asked
-We definitely WERE NOT supposed to turn anyone down for any free pastry we had in stock before 10:30 (unless they already got their one free one)

Yes I'm sure about all these things. If you disagree, I'm right, you're wrong. Check the portal. Also, if you were turned down for your free pastry cause you didn't have the coupon or whatever, sorry about that. It definitely wasn't at my store.

Anyway, overall at my store: it was a bit of a P.I.T.A. working today, but still manageable. Relatively low-volume store.

[koolaid free]

We offered free pastries to all of our customers. We were sent plenty to go around. When you enter the discount code it codes the product back to marketing, so no big deal.

FYI-customers did not need to have a coupon, AND they could chose any pastry they would like. Period.

There is no need to get so dogmatic about the "rules". Just say yes trumps all others within reason. This day was intended to surprise and delight our customers. I'm sorry some store ruined it.

[vivavia]

I had so much fun working this morning! We decided that there were so many pastries we would never go through them all relying just on coupons so we offered them to everyone. I was surprised at the amount of people that refused though. I was also surprised at the amount of people that wouldn't even let me finish my "would you like..." and just said NO!

[Darth Sidamo]

In all it was a slight bit busier than normal. Nothing hectic.

@Marcus. The barista was probably searching for the best way to turn you down. Maybe because you were understanding and maybe polite or just willing to buy a pastry anyways they decided to make an exception. Just say yes only means that we will do our best to solve your problems. It isnt a "Everything is free if you are upset" policy. Since you were pleasant it worked out in the end.

I didnt read the portal but mmmm....sugar seemed to have it about right. The problem is that information for us does not come from the same source. It is almost like you having to watch Fox, ABC, and NBC just to get the daily news. Ontop of the fact we are usually understaffed and can only check these things on lunch or a break, which defeats the purpose of a break. Sorry for the mix ups but Im glad in a whole MOST people were happy.

[Erik]

I don't go to the free giveaway anything days for Starbucks or anyone else, as I usually run into a long line of people who are overly belligerant over a free giveaway. From what you are all saying though, my local SB might not have been crowded.

[Mousie]

I had forgotten all about Free Pastry Day, despite the reminder email from Starbucks and the printed coupon in my backpack. So I hit my home Starbucks at about 10am -no crowds, pastry case looked pretty normal for that time of day, no mention from the partners about the promo. Ran some errands, then hit my study Starbucks at about 1pm (yeah, life is rough when you're a grad student). Pastry case looked unusually full, I ordered my usual latte, no comment from the partner, end of transaction. After I settled in to study, a different partner offered free pastries to everyone who came in for a beverage. Lots of surprise and delight, but I felt unworthy. Piffle. So no free pastry for me this time around.

But at least the Starbucks Red was freshly brewed. Hadn't tried that one before, but it's a keeper!

[tea-rex]

From my understanding, our store only got about a hundred or so free to give away, that didn't go very far. What was everyone else's like?

There is a slight difference between "surprise and delight" and "advertise it so people who would never come to Starbucks otherwise come in and jam pack the store just for a free pastry". That makes it not exactly the fun even it's supposed to be, for partners and customers alike.

Then again, maybe that's the only way to get new customers these days. At least the customer count is good...

[baristamclane]

Two hours in to the promotion, we were told to start offering the free pastries to everyone, and we continued offering them after 10:30, since we still had so many.

I thought today was going to be chaos, but the only frantic part of it was when a customer completely drove past the speaker and ordered at the window, holding up the customers behind her.

[K]

I was totally surprised and delighted this afternoon while at a Starbucks in my local Target store, I was offered a free pastry. I didn't think they would be participating, much less offering it in the afternoon. I shared the scone with my kids and it made the wait to pick up our prescription at the pharmacy much shorter to have a "treat" for them while we waited.

[Catherine]

I was surprised that both this year and last year was not a big wait at the store nearest my home on free pastry day. Then again, when I was leaving I did notice that the drive-through line was at capasity.

I had no idea there was a difference between morning pastries and afternoon pastries. I am not fond of paying $2.00 for one sugary snack, so I usually don't get food at Starbucks (except sometimes an oatmeal).

Anyway, at the store I went to this morning it seemed like the people in front of me did not have a coupon and were offered a free pastry. I figured "just say yes" should be the case, but I printed a coupon just in case. I went to a different store at lunch time, and I was tempted to ask and see if they were still giving out free pastries, but instead I just got a drink.

[SNAN]

I only take issue with the concept of driving people to a coupon and then not requesting the coupon once you're in the store. If it's a "special" value I get as somebody who registered with Starbucks.com and I receive these offers in the email, it doesn't feel so great when I walk in and everybody gets it. Especially when the only two options I get(low fat) are always available when I go in, but today I couldn't get them because presumably they'd been given away free to people who likely didn't have the coupon like I did.

[JackSmash]

SNAN - only child?

[I.Heart.Spirit]

I had SOOOOO much fun participating in 'free pastry day'. We had entirely too many pastries last year left over and received more this year than last year. We were offering a free pastry to anyone and everyone. Our customers were thrilled with the surprise and delight! The extra business made things even more exciting.

Though, I will admit after a while hearing things like 'which ones are free?' and 'oh I don't want one, I bet there's a catch' was a bit too much.

Still, wonderful day!

[Argentius]

Ordered my coffee and a scone, asked "how is free pastry day going? I see you've got a lot of pre-bagged stuff for the drive through, looks fun!"

"Yeah, it is," says the barista, "That'll be $4.08." That's the price with the pastry.

"Sure," I said, "but, can you take the pastry off, please?"

"Well, you have to have have the coupon," said the Barista.

So, letter-of-the-law policy enforced here! I showed her the coupon on the iphone and hey presto, free.

[Longo]

At our store, some customers were being CHARGED for their pastry if they didn't mention the promotion or have a coupon. Since I'm new to the store and this was a shift that was doing this, I just kept my mouth shut but I don't think that's what it's supposed to be about. Today I asked some of our regulars what pastry they had chosen and they said that no one had even mentioned it. Needless to say, I quickly quit asking. Is it any wonder that we had leftover pastry at 10:30? Our SM didn't do anything about it because he/she didn't even come in to the store all day.

It was still fun, but crazy. We were encouraging people to try something that they've never had before. The only annoying thing was when a couple of customers said, "No, not that one. I want THAT one." Please!!!!

[shift misto]

just for the poll...

we do not expect coupon at our store. its simply happy FP day, pick an ***AM**** pastry.

we did NOT offer the PM pastries, and they were pulled from the case so customers didn't feel limited. we were not sent pm pastries to sample as i would imagine is the same with other stores since this was an AM event.

we dont advertise it becuase its not "hey were going to give away free stuff to drum up new freeloaders". its a "hey thanks loyal customer who gives us money all year, you're awesome, have a scone".

[ugh]

Well, we didn't have to call the cops like last year...so...I guess it wasn't as bad.

My SM was as stingy as ever, of course. No pastry unless the customer had a coupon, and of course very few had them. Then immediately after 10:30 am she insisted we sell the rest and had us upsell pastries up the wazoo and got mad if we didn't suggest every single item to the customer through DT.

So...yep. That's FPD in the ghetto for you.

[Brian]

I work at a Drive Thru store. Every other customer: "I've heard it's free pastry day; what pastries do you have?"

I couldn't wait until 10:30.

[freckled1]

I normally patronize the Sbux near work a few times a week. I didn't have my free pastry coupon on me -- they had tons of pastry at 10:15 -- charged for it anyway. Between that episode and other mediocre service, I am done with Starbucks.

[Ash]

the store I visited had no signs or any mention of Free Pastry Day. I asked about it and they gave me a free pastry but it seemed to be a huge pain in the patoot for them. I wasn't impressed. I appreciate the freebie but not the attitude. I was surprised there wasn't more excitement about this at the store.

[LakeForestDriveThru]

our manager told us to push the promotion all day. Very busy all throughout the day. But a great success, we had no pastries left at the end of the day.

[buck'it]

i think the attitude of the store was based on the manager and dms attitude. ours was not to automatically ask which one they wanted but to wait for them to order it or mention it. we did it all day. we did recieve the loafs as free one along with am.
we ran out of all ours by 5pm. the case was empty.