Should 'Suzy Coffee' work at a licensed Starbucks?

A woman who calls herself Suzy Coffee writes to Starbucks Gossip:

I was a store manager for Starbucks in the bay area for over 3 years. During that time, we had an 80 percent store manager turnover. Some stores turned over managers 3 times. The pressure was awful, and we were never acknowledged for what we did or how hard we worked.

I ended up quitting a job I could have loved had there been some stability in upper management. Our DM’s were leaving and our RM was an emotional wreck. No one liked or trusted her.

I still feel this might have been a great opportunity for me.

How is working for the licensed stores? Do they differ in the politics, the pressure and the high manager turnover? I am considering a District Manager position.

Are they more or less supportive of their people?

Just curious.

Suzy Coffee.

Paging current and former licensed store employees! What advice do you have for her?

Comments

[Herman]

Need more information as there are multiple companies running license stores. The question really isn't about running licensed stores, but rather what company she'll be working for as the politics and other crap tends to flow down the food chain.

[Ian]

If you are asking other people whether or not you should consider a position of district manager, I would highly not recommend it. If you can't make your own educated decisions, I think you would be a bad manager. Plus you are asking Starbucks Gossip; you will receive a few extremes that may not be applicable to your situation.

[Anon]

If you felt sbux was bad I'd say don't go for license stores. The companies you work for (target, supermarkets, etc.) tend to be awful compared to sbux. If you felt sbux was bad I would suggest a job outside of retail, perhaps in an office.

[Realitycheck]

Seriously?you are asking strangers for advice on a job?
Politics are everywhere. So it might be a better situation, and maybe not.
But if you think you are going to stroll in and get a management position, oh honey, you need a reality check

[suzy coffee]

I asked "strangers" because i was hoping you all would be informative. it is just research. but, thanks anyway.

[realitycheck]

I'm ok. Seems juvenile at best, very strange as well. Yes, working in the real world is hard. I think i'm getting the picture as to why you did not move up with Starbucks. Good for them.

[drive]

I have not worked in a licensed store, so I can't compare in that regard. But I have been a "borrowed partner" in many stores, and they are so completely different in how they are run that you would never know they were all part of the same company.

Some managers are casual and some are rigid. Some micromanage and some let you do your own thing. Some let partners take home the marked-out food and others make sure the food is destroyed and thrown out.

We had partners who hated working in my store and transferred out, and other partners who loved working in my store and didn't want to ever transfer out.

It's hard to predict, but an important question is: What is the opportunity cost? What job would you be giving up or not taking in order to take this licensed store job? I don't think a bad experience at Starbucks means the same bad experience for a licensed store or for any other coffee shop or even any other retail shop.

[Junaid]

I've asked this question before, but has anyone else have trouble accessing e-gift card app on both facebook and the main website starbucks.com? I have purchased over 1000 dollars of gift cards that I then wanted to send to my family abroad for Christmas but the last week and a half, the app had a runtime error that wouldn't allow me to access their page. On the main website, many of the names of my fb friends list is absent, so I can't send it to any family members. It's incredibly insane that I have to go through this at the time of the year people would want to send cards.

[CoffeeBean330]

Suzy, maybe you can get to know someone or a few people at a nearby licensed store. That way you can ask them personally how they feel about it. I'm thinking maybe it would be better if you were a DM. You would be more in control. Good luck!

[Realitycheck]

Either way, thinking you can walk into a company any they will make you a manager is beyond presumptuous and most likely shows why she did not move up with Starbucks. Everyone's opinion of themselves is off and most will twist circumstances to make it sound like they have been wronged in these kind of situations, when in reality, they just did't deserve the raise because they were not fit for the job

[Living la Vida Noble]

I worked for Starbucks for three and a half years as a shift and left a year ago. What I saw was the company slowly deteriorating from behind the counter, as many of us have experienced. While the stock price and sales went up, the whole "partner" experience was no more.

I was recruited and interviewed for a management position last year with Barnes & Noble as a cafe manager and when I was offered, I took the position in a heartbeat. I'm not sure about other licensed stores like Target but I can say for absolute certainty that working in a Barnes & Noble Cafe' that serves 99.9% of the Starbucks drinks, has been a dream come true! B&N cafes still have all of the things that I liked about Starbucks without all the incredible amount of crap and unrealistic expectations. I now work half as hard and make more money. The cafe exceeds all of its metrics; I love my job and look forward to going to work every day.

As Starbucks becomes more and more like the McDonalds of coffee, I can see first hand, people coming into my cafe complaining about deteriorating service and quality at our local Starbucks corporate stores. I have converted many a regular Starbucks customer to Barnes & Noble... you even get 10% off in the Cafe' with a B&N member card, like when Starbucks had the old black (gold) card.

Again, I don't know about other places, but if you are frustrated with Starbucks, whether you are a Barista, Shift, or SM, look to your local B&N cafe... you already have the skills :)

[Lobstertrapper]

Suzy, I've heard that working for Target is a nightmare with licensed stores. But I've heard great things about Barnes and Noble. I think the underlying herd and corporate mentality of micromanaging and blaming the lowest man on the totem pole still applies at licensed stores as it does in regular BUX. It is rare that you don't get a total douche in upper management...in any form of Starbucks.

[Herman]

As Starbucks becomes more and more like the McDonalds of coffee,

McDs brews decaf all day long so Starbucks has a way to go to catch up.

[Jeff Tom]

Does Starbucks run any sort of clearance sale to clear out the excess Xmas blends?

[P]

BOGO dec 28-30.

[CoffeeBean330]

It's a waste to brew decaf all day. If brewing it lets us catch up to McDonalds, well it's a good thing we stop at noon.

[realitycheck]

They "brew" it all day. It will have sat there for hours turning to sludge by the afternoon, so much better than a freshly brewed pour over any day!

[Iced Latte]

Sounds like Suzy's regional manager was either Lisa P or Maya R? Both had/have a history of creating lots of management turnover. Lots of Bay Area DMs and SMs have quit in the past 2 years.

[Free Starbucks]

I wonder why the turnover is so high.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Get-A-Free-Starbucks-Gift-Card/295052983841513

[suzy coffee]

thank you lobster trapper for your sound mature advice. I was a great store manager, and I am a store manager with a different company now. I miss the fun with the customers, the relationships we all shared, it was a family. it was great. but the bs from starbucks took the fun out of it. I will check out barnes and noble. I might enjoy that or a dm position, something I have done in the past. thank you again. you were helpful.

[Jeff Tom]

sweet jesus. what AA group in their right mind would hold a member meeting in a starbucks? I can understand the warm environment, the coffee, etc., for a "holiday" meeting. but to have people baring their testimonies (or whatever) out loud, breaking down crying, making themselves points of attention from all of the other patrons.... WHOSE STUPID IDEA WAS THIS?!?!?!?!?!?

[Realitycheck]

The problem is you assume they will snap you up as a manager. Which shows huge immaturity And that you are not really all you claim to be. Have fun parading. It won't get you far.

[Just a Barista]

Suzy Coffee,

I am sorry that you have gotten so many negative responses. Wow, I thought you were just interested in hearing from other licensed employees. I am a long time Starbucks store employee and can certainly understand the frustration of the store managers- all of the responsibility and none of the authority that managers used to have. It is a very stressful job now. As someone who has worked in many industries, I can distill the one piece of knowledge I have gained. IF you work with good people most jobs can be great. If you work with lousy people, I don't care how much they pay you, you will be miserable! Of course, the secret is finding those few good people to work for and with. I regret to say, as the years have rolled along and some of the middle managers have been less than adequate, the number of lousy employees has increased as the truly great employees have left. Good luck with your opportunities and keep a sharp eye out for the "good" employers and employees.

[Realitycheck]

She would not have gotten such bad responses if she had not assumed she could just walk into a company and manage. Not she was willing to do whatever, she was going to waltz in and offer to manage. How self-important

[Yerba]

I didn't see it that way at all. I read a partner wanting to put energy into something she found positive aspects to , and give a disappointing experience a second chance. No need to be so prickly and kinda mean.

[suzy coffee]

thank you yerba, you nailed it. i have a great job with a great company.i am a store manager. i could stay there and go into a dm position in the next year or so. but i remember the parts of starbucks i really liked. i was willing to possibly look into other opportunities that might be out there. thank you again for your kind and supportive attitude

[Youranass]

Your still a Self-important ass hat no matter how you paint it. You think you are better than others and if you are not given positions of authority you start to kick and scream. No. You are not better than anyone.

[baristamclane]

Realitycheck, grow up. She has experience as a manager, I would say it's safe for her to assume she qualifies for another management position. I know of at least seven former partners who were offered management or district management positions with other companies after they left Starbucks. Three of which were baristas.

Suzy, I can't offer you any actual advice about the licensed store experience, but don't get caught up in the nostalgia of reliving your Starbucks days, because it may not be what you expected. Regardless, I wish you the best of luck.

[clvrlvr]

Euch, all the mean spirited comments in this post - great parallel with the Starbucks company environment. We used to be, as a company, all about supporting each other. Now it's about who can be the most profitable as any good rapacious american corporation would be...is it surprising at all to learn that operations has been staffed over the past several years with sr leadership from Yum brands (taco bell)?

[Jonathon Nield]

I work weekends at a licensed store for Macy's. I also worked for multiple company owned locations for over two years. I love the place I work but after talking to other baristas at various locations including Target, I can tell you that its going to be very hit and miss. Macy's makes Starbucks quite a high priority because Macy's clientele matches Starbucks clientele and we make a lot of money for the store. The standards and training SHOULD be the same. However, if you come from a busy store like I did, it may drive you crazy when you see that deployment does not even exist. It also may be hard to choke down that just because its a Starbucks store does not mean they permeate Starbucks culture. I believe that can hold true for a company store as well.

[nothappyanymore]

Managing one store does not qualify you to manage another. And simply having a title does not make you good at that title. I've seen it quite a few times. Politics. Bad hiring practices. Being a manager and being qualified are two different things.
That being said I have no idea why anyone would post a question like this on a random blog.