In Portland, independent coffee shops thrive while Starbucks sputters

Starbucks fans will call this columnist just another Starbucks-basher, but he make some good observations. Among them:

There is a moment in the history of every business enterprise where the commitment shifts from quality to profit, and Starbucks had its moment years ago.

Growth changed Starbucks' priorities. It now banks on the notion that customers will settle for less than the best if it's reasonably cheap, consistent, and brewed -- by automated machines, of course -- on every street corner.

He says when you walk into Coffee Plant and Stumptown -- two Portland independent shops -- "there is a different vibe, a far more personal approach to coffee, and a window into why Starbucks has grown so stale in our little corner of the world."

The fact is, this is happening in cities across the country -- coffee-loving entrepreneurs are opening up shops that are dedicated to customers, and not Wall Street. And traffic is headed their way, not to Starbucks. (Read the Portland Oregonian story)

Comments

[triple-sec latte]

question for chicago area coffee aficionados... what is your take on intelligenstia and argo? i've gotten into arugments with friends who accuse these establishments as "indie poseurs," but i tend to like them for their "pseudo-indie" status. any thoughts?

also, as a customer who appreciates both SBUX and "indies" (and "pseudo-indies"), i must say that i am enjoying this thread from a sort of "fly-on-the-wall" perspective.

[Gordon]

"Not a button pusher" needs to get a life. Having to resort to "free speech" as his reason for being here, is someone seriously in denial.

Nothing about speech here is free, as I believe someone is paying for the server for your words to be hosted.

So get over your fantasy that the internet is some kind of "free speech" zone. What you're doing is "abusive speech", and I wonder how long the moderator here is going to tolerate you.

"And traffic is headed their way, not to Starbucks."

Then why at Starbucks do I have to stand in a long line each morning?

$2.77 Billion in record revenue in their last quarter with 14,000 stores, and people are not going to Starbucks?

The indie shops are better on some drinks here, but like most industries when comparing independents quality (product and service) varies greatly from one to the other, and the quality one's here charge more than Starbucks. You pay for what you get!

And Starbucks is the not the Macdonald's of the coffee industry, it's Macdonald's. Madonald's coffee is horrible!

Word of advice. If you don't like Starbucks, then don't drink their coffee!

[Jim Romenesko]

Your best bet is to ignore comments that you find abusive. Don't bait him.

I used to love starbucks until I started working there. $7.98 an hour isn't enough pay to deal with all I had to deal with. I'm not talking about customers I'm talking about my bitchy manager who thought treating me like an insolent 3 year old and discriminating against me becuase of a medical conition was okay. I'll miss all my regualar customers but I won't miss getting yelled at several times a day by a frustrated closeted lesbian.

[justsayno]

Starbucks is a great starting off place to introduce people to better quality coffees. People go to smaller coffee shops when they are ready to expand their coffee experience. Or want espresso drinks that feature espresso, not sugary syrups. Starbucks is definitely not my sotres competition.

[Zipy]

Before starbucks, you went to dennys or some other local food joint for coffee. Local crappy doughnut place. You didn't go to "its coffee grind bla bla bla" shiek coffee hut, because there werent any. There was no espresso culture, really, not like we have today.

Fact of the matter is, all these small coffee shops are only around because starbucks made coffee into a high paying industry.

I am not saying starbucks invented coffee shops I am just saying theres so many more now a days because of starbucks.

So, yeah, you're welcome.

^ I've said this before, and I will keep saying it. You are right, Starbucks may not have created this culture, but they made it main stream. That being said, I think they are becoming a victim of the same culture they helped cultivate. They introduced the country to "quality" coffee. Made be realize there is more to coffee then Folgers, Denny's, or Circle K. Now that people out there are aware there is some great coffee to be had, they are coming to the realization that Starbucks is not the best. It’s pretty good, but it’s not great, and is seeking out coffee elsewhere.

[sbuxnewbie]

I can't speak for anyone else, but I don't care about competitions.

What i care about is a cup of coffee, or a mocha, latte, or cappuccino that taste good to me, at a reasonable price, delivered in a reasonable amount of time.

I don't care about "latte art". it does little change the taste of the beverage.

I've had great espresso from manual and semi-automatic machines, and lousy espresso from those same machines.

I know that I can get a consistent drink at Starbucks. You may not like it, but it is my taste buds that I'm concerned with.

Whan I'm behind the bar, I do my best to give my customers the best beverage I can make. On any given day, I'll probably remake 5-6 drinks because I'm not satisfied with them, and I wouldn't give a customer something I wouldn't drink myself.

(well, except for a green tea latte or anything with peppermint, but that's neither here nor there.)

I work for Starbucks because I want to. I like my manager, my co-workers, and my customers. And, as I've stated, I do support independent coffee shops also - but if I get attitude from behind the bar,I'm an ex-customer.

And frankly, the absolute best cup of coffee I ever had was probably little more than warm brown water, but I'd just finished a 12 hour shift digging through the wreckage of the World Trade Center, looking for human remains.

It's all in your perspective.

[Von Brucen]

Starbucks would have lost business and would have turned off more customers by not switching to the automatic machines. The demand and traffic at most starbucks stores makes manual machines obsolete. Most independent cafes don't suffer from the strain of high volume traffic, due to low brand recognition, inconsistent standards & quality, and innefficient deployment/operations/customer service, making automatic machines unnecessary. Generally when someone brags and blows hot air to the extent of "Not a Button Pusher", they are overcompensating for some inadequacy that also drives them to feel the need to prove to the world how much better they are than everyone else, which reveals their own debilitating insecurities in the process. Brings to mind the great words of the wise and knowledgeable Mr. T when he said "I pity the fool."

[Pat Nerr]

at the end of the day it's all the same... just coffee... and it all ends up in the same place... the 4th place (i.e. the toilet)... which then goes into the ocean and ends up eventually watering more coffee trees... so that beans can be grown and roasted that more folks may bitch about who's coffee/company is better...

the cycle of life folks... just sayin'

[Darleen]

And again, if you think you make drinks as good as the indies, bring it anytime. You will certainly fail, and run back to Howie. I am sure myself and anyone else in the REAL coffee industry would love to show you what real espresso is. Again, come to any of our shops at anytime and challenge us with your drinks, outside on the street, and prepare to be embarrassed

I'm sure any one of my drinks can go up against yours. Even with an automated machine. You conveniently left out the name of the coffee shop you work at, how can I respond to your request? My drinks taste like heaven in a cup, how's that for modesty? LOL. I'd take you on in a millisecond. Just because we aren't indie does not for one second mean we can't make an awesome drink. Get over yourself dude.

You know...the funny thing...when you LOOK for a coffee shop job...even at and INDIE coffee shop...they always favor the applicants who have previous barista experience...FROM STARBUCKS. Go ahead. Go look in the paper or Craigslist. It'll say something along the lines of "starbucks barista experience preferred." I dare ya.

[Evil_Gene]

The truth of the matter is that these little Mom and Pop Coffee stands offer Espresso equally and often times far better then Starbucks. When I can go to my favorite "Bob's On Broadway" and order the exact same drinks for almost $2.00 less and they are superior to Starbucks, that's where my money will be spent. The drinks are consistant in quality, where Starbucks you never know if you drink will be bitter, watery or too hot to hold. I honestly will say that I have stopped the Starbucks visist's because of the in-consistent quality of the Barista making the drink.
Even Starbucks wants to stand out from the crowd, they really need to think about rebranding themselves and think about what made them successful in the 1rst. place.

as a manager of an indie, I avoid hiring people with barista experience, especially starbucks, because there's so much retraining involved. peets maybe.

former starbucks employees have great customer service, but we have to totally retool their coffee knowledge. it's way easier to hire someone who knows nothing but has a passion for coffee and a good attitude, so we can teach them the correct techniques and knowledge from the get go. it's HARD to break the bad habits that former baristas come with. it took me a solid year to unlearn the "skills" I learned from peets.

[Adrienne]

I would hope you don't discriminate against ALL former Baristas.

As, personally, I would LOVE to use a manual bar and learn more about coffee. And all baristas aren't bad...just the ones who think it's a "McJob"

it's not that I think that all former baristas are "bad". it's that they have ingrained habits that it's hard to retrain, and many times they have attitudes when they are told that they know very little about coffee.

even working at peets, I had NO idea how much more there was to learn about the specialty coffee world- corporate coffee intentionally walls you off from the larger coffee world and tells you that their way is the only way, feeds you misinformation, and gives you a falsely superior attitude. at peets I was told that we were far superior to anything else out there, which I know now is patently false.

I have hired former baristas, and there's a chance I will again. but it's not a high chance.

[anon]

howie and company seem to be so worreied about being perceived as "fast foodish". why? that is the starbucks niche market. they should be embracing and exploiting that. the company can never be like a little indy coffee house, stop trying. its like trying to create a backyard grill barbeque at mcdonalds. its not that, yet mcDs is huge because fast food style burger meals fits a market need. stop howard. bring back the food, accept it is fast food now and will always be. but its ok.

[20secondshotguy]

I was in an indie shop a few weeks back and asked about a bean they were selling - out of pure interest. I liked the cup I was drinking and wanted to know what it was.

The barista had to ask one person, who asked another person, who asked another person before the first person took a guess.

The shop has a great local rep and participates at SCAA conferences, barista championships, etc.

No one knew. I laughed to myself and realized that in the end, it all comes down to the people and the service they provide. That looks a little different shop to shop. Recipes are different, as is our approach to individual bean.

I've been to the barista championships. And Starbucks partners in different markets have had similar events for years with both espresso and blended beverages. They're just like them--so don't let that talk intimidate at any level.

As I said before. Our responsibility is to respect the bean ~ regardless of which cafe we work for ~ and realize that most, if not all of us in every shop are trying to do the same.

[coffeefan]

I'm a big fan of small(er) chains like Stumptown, Ladro and Peets. A Starbucks Americano or espresso just can't compare to any of those stores. If you want a shot or two of coffee in a big monster cup of milk, sure it's probably not going to be as easy to taste the difference.

And I'm no hippie, I'm a corporate tech-dork who just appreciates good coffee.

[Dean]

I've always been an oficinado of independent businesses in general, so having a bias for a coffee shop ("the little guy") that is competing with a chain of coffee shops would hardly seem to be a radical idea.
It is unfortunate that independent does not always mean better or innovation. People are so embroiled in the David versus Goliath that they have forgotten to look deeper into what it could all be about.
I managed a coffee house that featured a liberal dose of free local entertainment and arts.. in fact it was probably one of the most exciting places to go in town. We broke a lot of items into the trade as well. We were, for example, one of the first places to offer yogurts to our customers, if you could imagine a time when no one knew what yogurt was in the states.
To give some perspective here, it seems that on a local level in Kansas City one can not really say that a competition between yuppie capuchinos is much of what I would call an earth breaking revolutionary kind of event. It is frankly, quite boring.
I talked with some people at a Starbucks here that was closing. They were most upset because they felt that their 'family' was being broken up. Is it possible that for once someone had defined one of the key magic elements that when there is nothing much to boast of in product diferentiation is elemental to any business being a cut above the rest?
Ironically the independent local coffee houses mostly seem to have abandoned any attempts to offer anything innovative or unique and they have also become bastions for drug dealers who like to dominate and intimidate the local populace at large. Unlike bars you don't have to be 18 to get in either. Of course there is nothing much to stop Starbucks outlets from becoming nothing much more than this themselves. And any business can be used to launder money illegally obtained. The old time hippies like to continue to pretend that they are alternative types but let's face it, they are nothing more than the creepy mafia types that they have come to defend with their old sixties facades, long worn away.
People should look deeper into what defines the quality of life instead of being distracted by sterotypical details. While I will always be one (it's quite American you know) to fight for the little guy, I'd say if you are going to spend time arguing over independent versus corporate one should take a good hard luck at what is coming with each. Some coffee shops go the extra mile to really add something exciting to their communities. You can simply stuff your face at home or many other ways and that's hardly much of a revolutionary event. What difference is it going to make if people are meeting to plug their heads into the internet void or simply meeting to gossip or lie about their neighbors if it is accompanied by a frappuchino at Starbucks or Organies' Bean Shop? Both places provide jobs, neither guarantee much in benefits, and it is today the rarer of events if the customers even notice or care if something better happens to their brains as they pass through the doors, other than some chemical enlightenment. Obviously no amount of caffeine is going to be enough to wake people up to see that just having another place to stuff things into their mouth is a subject worth arguing over.
I remember hours, late nights languished watching and talking with musicians and artists who spent their time in coffee houses where the content was the central detail, and the coffee was the whip cream to fuel the engine.

[Mike]

Here is a good site to find independent coffee shops around: cafehunt.com

[Mike]

"...caffeine-fueled lifestyle of sitting around and bitching: liberals and Europeans." the second is more true. I'd say with independent coffee shops, it is more about the culture and improved life style than the caffeine. Of course many of them suck, but the good ones will inspire a new generation of places for a yet improved lifestyle. It reminds me the difference between the difference between a Microsoft driven computing world, and one derived by creatives commons / opensource developpers. The second must succeed for us to take the civilization forward.

Read the 'About Us' section for this site http://www.cafehunt.com . It lists independent coffee shops around.

[Adam]

I work at Sbux, however I totally support the independent thing, but there are definitely a few things that bother me--

1. Indie places always want to be different or better than Starbucks, yet whenever I go into one, there is always some drink that is basically a rip-off of a drink that Starbucks came up with (i.e. there is always a drink similar in name to Caramel Macchiato or Frappuccino, both Starbucks innovations). If you're going to be all arrogant about being indie, then don't ride Starbucks' coattails.

2. I, like many others have stated, wish that our espresso quality was better, (by the way, it is better now thanks to some Verissimo updates) but it is a lot more important for most customers to get in and out fast than it is for their Venti 7-pump white mocha to have higher-quality espresso that they can't even taste. There are a few customers that we know can tell the difference and they expect quality shots and foam, and I always do my best to make it the exactly the way that they like it.

3. For the indie baristas that are here on this board and care about your job, thank you. I really do appreciate the indies that take pride in their job and know that one of the best ways to edge out Starbucks is through higher-quality espresso/lattes. However, you are the exception to the rule, in my expreience. The truth is, at $7/hour for part-time people it is very difficult to find good help, and I share the exprience of many others here who have received poor quality service at an indie by a 17 year old girl who really just doesn't care. I'm sorry that's just the way it is.

[brian s.]

We should be more worried about the Bildeberg group effect on our government and the corporate sell outs the democrats and republicans are. I call them good cop bad cop. Who cares about coffee. You can count on starbucks to be clean and have lots of tables a nice place to meet and they have lots of staff and work fast. Read "The true story of the Bildeberg group" to better the world.