I am huge Starbucks fan. When I need to feed my caffeine addiction, you will normally see me at Starbucks. When I want to work close to home and feel that I am around fellow techies, you will see me logged in with my laptop at Starbucks. But would I want to go to Starbucks for a glass of wine?
I don't think so....
Next time you read the Starbucks menu, you may see wine, beers and cheeses mixed within your usual coffee selections. Yes, the coffee chain powerhouse may revamp its menu with some (ahem) adult choices.
Where and when is this happening? The first launch is in Seattle and the doors opened this week after a three-month renovation. If it works, the changes may filter through to more of the 16,000 coffee shops Starbucks already has.
Along with alcoholic beverages, Starbucks will expand its food to include local cheeses and homemade soups (a move I would embrace). The service of alcohol is an attempt to increase nighttime sales. Currently, Starbucks does the majority of its business before 2 p.m. They hope quality wines and beer on tap will draw in evening crowds looking to unwind and chat with a barista/bartender.
Other changes are simply cosmetic. The new Seattle test café is furnished to appear as though as it has always been in the neighborhood; it's decorated with mute colors and tables made from refurbished floors from the area high school. The hope is to present a friendlier, non-chain café kind of feel.
With fierce competition from McDonald's and Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks sees the changes as the best way to energize the 40-year-old brand. The chain, worth $15 billion, is hoping its new hometown and green design appeal will allow the company to evolve and continue to succeed.
Thinking that I am probably in the minority, but I hope they keep my neighborhood Starbucks wine and beer free.
Article comments
1 - Alan Kurtz
I hope they keep my neighborhood Starbucks wine and beer free.
Why? You indicate you go there for coffee, which places you among the majority of Starbucks patrons, who drop by before 2 p.m. How would it spoil your Starbucks experience if they appeal as well to after-work wine-and-beer customers looking to unwind? It isn't like the shop will now be closed from 5 a.m. till 2 p.m. It'll still be there for your coffee. But after you go home to take care of your kids, another set of Starbucks lovers will rotate in to fill your vacated chair. Where's the harm? Or do you fear this will inevitably lead to drunken brawls spilling out onto the sidewalks and streets, thus ruining your lovely neighborhood?