Blogger aims to have smoking banned outside of Starbucks stores

The guy who launched the Starsmokes blog shares my pet peeve -- people who smoke in outdoor-seating areas at Starbucks or any retail establishment. He claims Starbucks "allows smoking outside of their stores." That's funny, because a day before he sent me a link to his blog I got in an argument with a Starbucks customer at a North Side Chicago store over his smoking in a cramped outdoor seating area. I asked Starbucks employees to intervene and they did -- telling the guy that smoking was not allowed. So kudos to them. Read the Starsmokes blog.

Comments

[?]

"I’m sure I’ve angered many smokers here, possibly others too. Hopefully you’ll look at the reasons you got angry. Get some help before it’s too late. The only one that can do anything about your predicament is you." Why would you presuppose your value of a healthy life as something that is unquestionably good for all?

[SMontherocks]

toke-e-mon: you actually pay MORE taxes because you smoke. the argument could be made that smokers actually assist the economy more than non-smokers because they pay more in taxes.
we truly are humanitarians :)

[805SM]

There are a lot of things that happen on our patios that should be left at home. For the 30-60 minutes that you are at Starbucks would it be that painful to skip the smokes, leave the dog or cat at home and pick up your newspaper when you are done reading so it does not blow all over the city. The problem is just a general lack of consideration for other people, it's the me, me, me, 10% generation. I don't see any signs of that changing in the future. 90% are considerate and thoughtful of others but that 10% requires all the attention and behave as if the patio is there own personal backyard. Which are you, the considerate 90 or the selfish 10?

If you want a change in the smoking policy in your city, work with your city council to get a smoking ordinance.

[BUXSM]

I don't care who smokes. I am a former smoker but I do not hold it against anyone who does. My only complaint is the litter. I keep ashtrays on our tables outside and people still insist on throwing their butts on the ground. It's gross, rude, and unsightly. If you are going to smoke outside and we have given you the tools in which to extinguish your butts at least be courteous enough to use them. I don't have the labor hours to keep sending people outside to sweep up YOUR butts.

[Non-stinky coffee lover]

Get a to-go coffee and take it home where you can stink up your own coffee hour - not mine.

[SBUCKS DRONE LOS ANGELES]

I don't really have a problem with people who smoke, I could care less if you want to kill yourself slowly. What bothers me are the damn cigarette butts!!! Our store has about ten ashtrays, but the smokers simply toss the damn butts on the floor for us to sweep up every 10 minutes when we do a lobby sweep. It's annoying to be picking up after these damn people!! Okay, so you smoke, but don't be a disgusting elitist and throw your damn butts on the floor! Use the ashtrays, that's why they're there!! If SBUX bans smoking though, the sales will incredibly go down. That's the sad truth.

[Wish I could be Buttless....]

As a Starbucks partner who takes plenty of shit from my DM and from other customers because of the hundreds of cigarette butts covering and surrounding my patio, I'd only be too happy if the smokers went elsewhere! Would our sales drop? Probably. Would we then be able to attract a cleaner, more respectful clientele? Probably.

We'd spend less time sweeping up butts and more time actually helping customers!

Besides, smoking is just nasty.

[WIcb Buttless is the only perfect 1]

wish I could be Buttless...
you got to express your opinion, here's mine
so you are claiming that only smokers are nasty, dirty and the only disrespectful people on the planet? what an arrogant ass of a employee you must be.
what EVER you do is "nasty" to me so i think you should "go somewhere else".
they don't allow smoking in the stores due to effects of the aroma to the coffee. local city/county/state rules apply in all other cases.

[KILL ALL THAT SMOKE]

Ben
Not to be cruel, but "writer in training " is more correct than you know. Spell check and less run-on, incomplete sentences would also help. If you are waiting on a response from the Sbux headquarters, give it up. They don't care about you and your "smoking gun" so that breath you are holding on the way into a store, let it out.

[restrict who is allowed to give money=customer service]

While we are on the subject of things that should be forbidden, i hate dogs and children. So should i start a blog post about sbux banning all children from entering or being within 50 feet of the stores? We should also ban any pets being allowed within the same 50 feet area which includes those coming through the drive thru. No more whipped cream filled lids for the pets. Works for me. Makes life better. :)

[Wish I could be Buttless....]

To: WIcb Buttless is the only perfect 1

....you kinda just proved my point about smokers being nasty and disrespectful. Thanks!

I stand by my previous post. If I didn't have to be sweeping up butts(nasty! They've been covered in saliva!) thrown on the ground by disrespectful(if you weren't disrespectful, you'd use ashtrays or clean up after yourselves!) disgustomers, I'd have more time to provide a third place experience for customers waiting in line.

That doesn't make me "an arrogant ass of a employee"...it makes me truthful. Sorry you'd prefer to smoke away and strew spit soaked butts all over a patio...I'm sure you'll have plenty of smoking butts in Hell. That should make you very happy!

[Ex-Nerfebarista]

I never even obeyed those rules/laws when i worked for the bux. These days if you asked me not to smoke out doors, you'd get the finger..

[whatwhat]

No matter where people smoke you're going to smell it. sometimes when I am at a traffic light in my car I can smell the cig smoke of someone near me. so theres no way of getting rid of it unless cigarettes are banned all together.

[Coffee Slinger]

Tobacco = Addiction

ok ill give you that.

Caffeine =Addiction.

Also true.

People pick their vices. It is not like they are sitting on your patio shooting up, or snorting a rail of coke off your tables. While I agree their should be a designated distance from the entrance to the building, since no one should have to smell it, smokers really should not be treated like disease ridden creatures. Would you like any of these people more if they did not smoke?

[Jack]

I don't mind smoking outside my store, I just don't like the same 4 guys who sit RIGHT by the front door, EVERY day, for hours at a time and make eyes at every female customer who comes in. I stopped setting up tables and chairs on that side of the store in the morning but they still drag them over to get the best "view". The worst part is one of them isn't even a customer anymore after throwing a fit over our refill policy. Everybody here has a problem with it, including the store manager, but nobody has said a word to them. *sigh*

[Sara]

I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

Sara

http://smallbusinessgrant.info

[Wombat]

Starbucks is turning a blind eye to smoking on the patios. I've never seen any no smoking signs outside Starbucks. I was just at a Bellevue Starbucks where people were smoking with 2 feet of the door on an outside table in violation of Washington Law. At least some of the smokers would be deterred from smoking if they had them. They are basically enjoying profits from giving their customers cancer.

[Wombat]

How much rights do people who want to force poisonous gas into my lungs so that my cells can mutate into cancer cells and I can die a early and painful death?

[me]

i am a smoker have been for over 30 yrs i smoke because i enjoy smoking, but all this whinging about smokers not being allowed to smoke on the patio is BS we smoke there all year round and the non-smokers come outside when its sunny and warm and complain all the time they are there, well if i am out on the patio and see a non-smoker pulling faces etc it makes me wanna smoke more and sit upwind from them so they get all the lovely smell of cigarette's.
When they get there way smoking is banned what are they going to complain about then ????? the cost of there taxes i bet as they will go up to make up for the money the government looses when they ban smoking. They have legs if they don't like the smell them move inside away from the smell it's so easy. Smokers have given as much as they can and should not be expected to give anything else.
I also agree with the post "come bother me with your bs about smoking and you will get burned"

[Elec Cig]

It seems smoking is hard-to-resist thing. and I found men that coffee seems to be one of the partners of a cigarette. but all these ashes are giving mess in every table, Good thing my friend told me about this e-cig thing. try to check it out.

[e cigarette]

Outside of starbucks?? Seriously. This is just ridiculous.

[B. Osman]

As much as I like Starbucks products, I'm a bit disappointed with their new outdoor smoking ban policy, as smoking is the least hazardous outdoors environmental factor compared to the Beef, and pork that is being served in their stores, and the other external polluters such as cars and truck driving by your patio area. If you are going to ban smoking I think Starbucks should also ban the following:

Vehicles from driving by their stores

* Emergency Vehicles and their sirens can bother my dog
* Obese individuals (bad influence on the nutritional habits of children, and can be potentially offensive to some people, let alone their over use of our oxygen and our shared air.
* Pets (they excrete feces and bad breath) and other things that could potentially be hazardous to our health.
* Very rich people, as they contribute to the lowering of the self esteem of not so rich people
* Poor people, as they can make rich people nervous
* Close any Starbucks that is located to another business which sells beef, as cows are the largest producers of polluting emissions, as well as the smell of beef is offensive to vegetarians.

* Close any Starbucks that is located to another business which sells pors , as pork can be offensive to certain ethnic groups (Jews, Seventh Day Adventists, Muslims...etc).
*

So, if you add it all up, I should probably be ashamed that I've been a customer of Starbucks for many years.

[Newsjunkies]

Smoking is the least hazardous compared to, say, cars, beef, pork around the patio area. Thus they ought to also ban the following:

-Many of their High Calories products which if seen by others, could make them enviable and force them to buy these unhealthy drinks which will eventually lead to obesity.
-Gas & diesel vehicles driving by their stores, as their emissions are worst than tobacco.
- Obese folks as they can be bad influence on the nutritional habits of children & can be offensive to skinny people , they also use more space, & oxygen.
-The Rich, as they can give the poor Low Self Esteem
-The Poor, as they can make the rich feel unsafe.
-Close Starbucks located near a business selling beef, cows are the largest producers of polluting emissions & the smell of cooked beef can offend vegetarians.
-Close Starbucks stores located near a business selling pork , as pork can be offensive to certain ethnic groups (Jews, Seventh Day Adventists, Muslims...etc).

[Newsjunkies]

I had meant to copy and paste the previous post from September 27th in agreement. But I ended up just pasting with your any additional comment. My apology "B. Osman"!

[Wavecraft]

!!!!! Stop being a DICK at Starbuckes !!!!!
Remember what being an American is really about!

I don't smoke but even if I did here is the point in fact. Unless you live in a city that has an actual ordinance (Law) banning smoking outside, people can smoke outside. In regards to public places. As long as by law a person is at least 15 feet away from the public entrance of a business.(In most cases, some cities have different distance restrictions) Starbucks can not(even though they'd like you to think that they can)just make up there own law regarding smoking outdoors. I here all these comments by nonsmokers saying that smokers should get over it. No you get over it. If you don't like being around smokers or you are just bothered seeing someone smoking, even if there 20 or 30 feet away from you, then you have the freedom to remove yourself from the area. You can go sit inside were it is actually not legal to smoke or just position yourself accordingly so it wont effect you. Don't be a dick and try to impose your views or try to take someone Else's Freedoms, Rights and Liberties away from them. That is not what America stands for. So until it actually becomes a real law on the books. Smokers have the right to freely enjoy a cup of coffee and a cigarette out doors in an open space. If there is no actual city ordinance prohibiting them to do so. You can not and you will not take peoples Rights, Freedoms and Liberties away from them. And neither can Starbucks. So stop being dicks and move yourself to the inside were it's legally a smoke free environment and stop whining and complaining about smokers in the open outside area. If you want to sit outside too, go right ahead. After all no one can tell you that this area is for smokers only so you have to leave. Stop your whining and be an American who stands for everyone’s Rights, Freedoms and Liberties. Again nonsmokers have the freedom to remove them selves from any place they may feel is uncomfortable for them.

[BlueGreen]

Hey all,

I have been watching this issue for a while and thought that I would share that as of June 1 Starbucks is implementing a new no smoking policy that will extend to its patios!

The story aired yesterday on a station in FL. (See below.)

Go Starbucks!!!

WJXT-TV broadcast clip:
http://ctv4.criticalmention.com/playerpage/player?params=Y29sbGVjdGlvbklkPTM5NjI5NSZwYXJ0bmVyVG9rZW49OGEzNjhiNDkzZTYyZDU1YjAxM2VmNTc3ZjU5MzMyZDQ=

WJXT-TV online story:
http://www.news4jax.com/news/starbucks-set-to-ban-smoking-within-25-feet-of-stores/-/475880/20351404/-/hrr0uw/-/index.html

[Tracy Ourhaan]

Rights, I have the right to bare arms, but not to smoke in an open courtyard within the smoking ordinance guidelines because Starbucks is next door. I feel I should use the gun in self defense to protect what few rights I have.

I will respond with the gun I have in my pocket. I will stop my card from auto reload and go to another Coffee Shop. That not only reduces my spend of no less then a $100/week habid but forbid anyone in my family from spending a nickel at what has become a Nazi Driven environment.

I do not like individual beliefs being imposed on the rights of individuals in a free society. I don't tell you how to, or who to pray too. I will tell anyone who feels their responsibility is to force me to do something against my will, not to let the door knob hit you where the good lord split you!

Starbucks just lost $10,000. 5K from me, and $5K from my wife and teenagers.

Take it and shove it.

I want an apology publicly and a reversal of this decision from the snot nose marketing guy who made this brilliant decision fired. Oatmeal was a winner, but this one is an "Awe Shit".
Now if I can count, that's 9 atta-boys behind.