When is a Starbucks not a Starbucks? When it's a 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea.
The ubiquitous coffee-shop giant is dropping the household name from its 15th Avenue East store on Capitol Hill, a shop that was slated to close at one point last year but is being remodeled in Starbucks' new rustic, eco-friendly style.
They will also sell beer and wine.
Starbucks is the very definition of ubiquitous. They are
everywhere. 16,000 stores across the globe means you will likely find
one in probably every major city in the world, along with a host of
smaller ones. I've been to several in the tokyo area and there is even one in Belleville, Ontario, Canada. I was stunned when I went back to the little town I
grew up in in Michigan in 2003 to find a Starbucks right downtown.
Now, Starbucks is realizing a lot of people view them as nothing more than a coffee incarnation of McDonalds. People even refer to Starbucks as "McStarbucks." Sure they are "the name", but for the same price or even less, you can go into a numerous places where the beans are fresh roasted on the premises, listen to live music and your husband can sip on a microbrew while you sample a glass of wine, an exotic tea, or a freshly roasted coffee. There is a small place a few blocks from my house that fits that bill called the Mandolin Cafe. Forza coffee is a small chain here in the Tacoma area. They recently applied for and was granted a license to sell beer and wine in their stores. Starbucks is not leading the way, they are following.
Will they change the title of the folks behind the counter from Barista to "Baristender"? Just wondering?
Cheers!
VW
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