Full-service Starbucks is located inside an Aston Martin car dealership

An Automotive News story (subscription-required) on Galpin Aston Martin luxury car dealership's Starbucks store in Van Nuys, CA reports:

"With a Starbucks outlet nestled between the new-car showroom and the service drive, Galpin has car shoppers buying coffee, and vice versa. [But] Starbucks had a major demand: The Starbucks area had to be a no-fly zone for car salesmen. Of course, that's slippery. A salesman can always buy tire-kickers a cup of coffee and sit with them in the Starbucks lounge for ambience.

A Starbucks customer who wanders into the new-car showroom usually is asked discretely by a salesman if he can help with anything. But [car dealership general manager Brian] Allan insists that no salesman can pester someone who came in solely to nurse a latte in the Starbucks lounge.

''When they come in to Starbucks, they have this safety zone,'' Allan says. ''Then they can wander over to the cars, while they say to themselves, 'I came for the coffee, not the car.'"

Allan estimates that having the Starbucks has helped the dealership sell one additional car per week to a customer who otherwise would not have gone to the Galpin showroom. That's small brew, considering that Galpin sells 500 cars a month from the location, but Allan won't turn it down.

Allan says most of the bonus sales are Volvos, mostly to soccer moms dropping the kids off at the private prep school down the street.

''They think Volvos are more expensive than they actually are,'' Allan says. ''They come in for a Starbucks, look at the Volvos as something to do and discover that the Volvo is a great deal.''

As for traffic flow, it turns out that car customers and Starbucks customers arrive at different times. Starbucks' peak times are early in the morning - before the service drive opens - as well as during the mid-afternoon and 5 p.m. slots when the dealership is typically slow.

But it's not as though Galpin is overrun with coffee-crazed customers.

''Starbucks is expensive enough that it keeps the riffraff out,''
Allan says. ''It's not like we put in a Subway or something like that.'' (Galpin Aston Martin)

Comments

[Moriah]

No shocker to me! I got my truck at Galpin a few years ago and they gave me a coupon for a free coffee.. I think it's a rad idea.

[Leah]

I know this doesn't have much to do with coffee, but it's a pet peeve. What kind of a writer would use "discrete" when they meant "discreet"? Discrete is a mathematical term meaning a set of unconnected distinct parts, like a dotted line. Discreet, on the other hand, is showing self restraint or prudence. Where have all the editors and proofreaders of the world gone?

[John]

I go to this store often, funny how they use "Aston Martin" as their headline. I don't think I have seen an Aston Martin there yet, guess it sounds better than Lincoln (which I have seen plenty of).

[martha5tewart]

they've had a starbucks inside the showroom of the dueck ford dealership on marine drive in vancouver, british columbia since january of 2001. as far as i know, however, no one goes out of their way to go there just for a coffee.

[Winter]

Except for me, who went to the Dueck dealership specifically to visit that Starbucks.

BTW, to the best of my knowledge those two Starbucks are different in that the one in Vancouver is operated by Starbucks while the one in California is licensed out.

[CoffeeBoy]

Winter ? Is that really you?? I wonder if you visited this site. We met once in Florida... How many stores are you up to?!

[NONO]

Hello guys ! I'm a french student, 20 years old. I don't really know why I'm here, but I am...so I was very interested in reading all your feelings about starbucks ; I learned that this brand is still present in France (Paris), and I find this concept absolutely wonderful...unfortunatly,I don't live in this great city, but near lyon...that's why I would like to know if you could tell me please what's the average size (S.F. or sqm) of a starbucks coffee...wonder if a friend could be interested to open one !
thanks

[Mamie Thomas]

This is what my father has told me. Everytime he goes around the town for car shopping, he would wish to have coffee shop just around the store of the cars. Now this is a good news for him.