Reporter gets a taste of Starbucks culture by spending an entire day there

The newsman says this Starbucks assignment "revealed a culture all its own, a caffeine-infused pseudocommunity within a city." (New York Daily News)

Comments

[cornfrost]

Hey, this is where I work. It's one of the busiest Starbucks in the nation, with sales as high as $10,000 a day. This guy did a terrible job of capturing what goes on there. Besides, the NYTimes did a way better job in the same story a few months back, only their location was on the Upper East Side.

[Boston Starbucks Rebel]

I think this reporter failed to do his homework. Coffeehouses have had a very long history of being places where people meet. Starbucks simply hit upon this idea and created the "Starbucks Experience." For example, J.S. Bach wrote an entire cantata called the Coffee Cantata which I must say is very good. Bach himself performed once a week on Thursday night in a German coffeehouse called Zimmerman's unforunately destroyed in World War II. But anyway, I think Starbucks has changed the coffee culture in America into something that is closer to its European ancestors. Unforunately, at times Starbucks fails to do this but I think it is because the dream becomes lost at times.

[R]

Boston Starbucks Rebel is correct. Coffee houses have a long, long history as gathering places for social, cultural, and business activity. Lloyds of London was founded in a coffee house. Starbucks should be commended, at least for this aspect. Can you imagine the same kind of activity happening at your local McDonalds?

[esther]

Hey, this sounds like a story I wrote for j-school. I went to the Starbucks off the Belmont Red Line stop in Chicago and wrote about how it was a place of waiting. Clean and corporate Starbucks was an interesting contrast from the artsy and independent shops nearby.

[Lauren]

When the writer mentioned how people conduct business at Starbucks, I have to scoff.I mean, we all know how people conduct business at starbucks. Presentations, interviews, heck I saw a Loan Officer with clients signing applications and disclosures for a home loan. However, I am a jewelry designer, and I like to go to starbucks to work on my peices. If someone walking by happens to notice, and ask about my work, I usually sell something. This has not been so lately. I've been told by employees, that I cannot sell my jewelry there. Does anyone know why intangible sales are ok, but not the tangible? I'm not asking people to buy, they are asking me.

[BRian]

I am a Bariasta and i have to say that I am tired of getting yelled at by customers that have this problem. It is very simple.... Starbucks is one Company, Barnes and Knobel is another. Barnes has bought the right to sell our coffe and use our recipies in thier coffee shop. If you look at the sign it says Barnes and Knobel Cafe proudly serving Starbucks coffee. IF you went to JC Penny you would not be able to use your Sears card there. Two different companies two different cards.

[Jason]

You think Starbucks is America's Favorite Drug Dealer? Guess again. C&H and the other sugar dealers are way ahead. Next time you go to the grocery store walk down the soda isle, the beer isle, the candy isle, the baking isle, and just about any isle in the store. How many pounds of sugar do you think each grocery store contains? People like to act like sugar is not an addictive drug, but they keep eating it until their teeth fall out. Sometimes people eat enough sugar to develop diabetes type two. A lot of people die because of diabetes type two. Sugar is so addictive that even after people have their teeth drilled out and get metal put in their mouths they still defend it. It's a drug because it has no nutritional value and it changes the chemicals in your body. Coffee on the other hand is found to reduce your chances of developing diabetes if you drink two or more cups a day. Here's something else you should check out. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/25/AR2006052501729_pf.html

[Pantera]

Someone can tell me all about Starbucks's culture as soon as possible?

Thanks.

[Jimpson]

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[Kim]

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