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Let me say that I have never had a cup of coffee in my life, BUT I spend too much time and too much money at Starbucks, mostly on tea drinks, but on occasional sweets or sandwiches.
So why can you walk 3 blocks from nearly anywhere in Manhattan and find a Starbucks?
Why not get addicted to any of the cheaper options, instead of the ridiculous Starbucks prices?
Why pay nearly the price of a gallon of milk or two gallons of gas for a cup of coffee at Starbucks, when you have so many options to shop for coffee drinks at a fraction of the cost, and put up with usually ridiculously long lines and the restroom lines are longer than the service lines?
I am stumped. I don't even know why I go, yet I do.
WHY, WHY, WHY?
I don't get it either, convenience, ....??????
This is what I believe it is, it's akin to the "Emperor's New Clothes!" By that I mean marketing, 90% marketing, like microsoft.
Let me say that I have never had a cup of coffee in my life, BUT I spend too much time and too much money at Starbucks, mostly on tea drinks, but on occasional sweets or sandwiches.
So why can you walk 3 blocks from nearly anywhere in Manhattan and find a Starbucks?
Why not get addicted to any of the cheaper options, instead of the ridiculous Starbucks prices?
Why pay nearly the price of a gallon of milk or two gallons of gas for a cup of coffee at Starbucks, when you have so many options to shop for coffee drinks at a fraction of the cost, and put up with usually ridiculously long lines and the restroom lines are longer than the service lines?
I am stumped. I don't even know why I go, yet I do.
WHY, WHY, WHY?
The reason is that you know what you're getting. When you walk into Starbucks you know for sure exactly what you're buying will taste like and you know that you won't get sick from bad food, in other words, you TRUST them and you're paying for the trust.
The popularity of Starbucks is really quite simple - it's an affordable "luxury". You can have a creamy, calorie-laden dessert in a cup for under $5 whenever you want, made precisely to your liking, regardless how ridiculous you like it.
And you become a member of the "elite club" once you master the lingo and proper technique to ordering. It's an ego stroker.
Australia seems to be the odd one out in the love affair with Starbucks: "Unlike almost every other country in the developed world, Australia does not do Starbucks. The international coffee monolith launched its first Sydney cafe in 2000 before opening a further 84 outlets across Australia’s eastern coast. Just eight years later, it had stacked up $143 million in recorded losses and was forced to close 60 stores."
There are a couple in my city. People generally view them as low quality relative to the other available options. Mostly seem to be frequented by tourists.
I hate it, but my kids contribute significantly to their profits. Middle child came home with frappacino in hand.
Same here. My daughter goes there all the time and has for years since she started college. She lives in China now and meets her tutoring students at a Starbucks in Beijing. I think a lot of their business is that young adult age group.
McD's sells their McCafe coffee in grocery stores now! I just bought three bags of it on sale.
As far as Starbucks I can't stand their regular coffee. It reminds of coffee that's been sitting on a burner too long. There's so many other places that have better coffee for half the price, I don't get the appeal either. For what it's worth the Starbucks near my house is always packed with high school kids and early 20-somethings.
I've said this before, but I've been told by someone in the coffee-bean business that normal dark-roasted coffee is roasted for 14 minutes at a certain temperature, and Starbucks roasts theirs for 8 minutes at a very high temp. That's why it tastes burnt, because it is. The saving of time with the volume of coffee they roast must save the company money.
As has been pointed out, a lot of these kids don't know what good coffee is supposed to taste like, and the burnt taste is disguised by all the sugars and syrups and fake creams they sell anyway. It's a win-win for Starbucks.
I think people pay more for Starbucks because their coffee is fantastic.
Perhaps some go because it is fashionable ~ they don't want to show up at the office with coffee from the deli when everyone else is clutching their Starbucks. It's a nice place to relax and listen to music. It's a likely place to meet people. They have extremely good pastries and lower calorie options. The stores are beautifully decorated, nicely lit, cozy in the winter, cool in the summer, clean, nice music, comfortable chairs and coffee tables if you wish to stay (having more the feel of a living room more than a coffee shop), tables and chairs suitable to work from, and the heavenly scent of fresh brewing coffee for those who love it.
They have a huge selection of coffees to choose from to bring home ~ buy either whole bean or they will grind it for you however you like it. Their employees are friendly.
They sell quite unique coffee mugs, coffee presses, coffee grinders, chocolate covered everything, sandwiches, and salads
They make the best coffee ever. Of course, I cannot speak for all Starbucks coffee shops, only the ones I've been to. I do not work there, this is just my experience. I am a firm believer in giving a good word when it is well-deserved.
Same here. My daughter goes there all the time and has for years since she started college. She lives in China now and meets her tutoring students at a Starbucks in Beijing. I think a lot of their business is that young adult age group.
Starbucks is the location of choice for tutoring sessions and group projects at my kids' high school. It's either that or Einstein's. Unlike the school library, the kids can eat and talk, and they have wifi to boot. It's pretty much perfect, so I get it, even if I do think the coffee is awful. In fact, I'd love to own a franchise. They make money hand over fist!
Truth be known, a bit reason TO AVOID Starbucks, for me, is it being full of kids and their laptops taking over every surface. It's about the least relaxing place to have a cup of coffee, IMO.
Truth be known, a bit reason TO AVOID Starbucks, for me, is it being full of kids and their laptops taking over every surface. It's about the least relaxing place to have a cup of coffee, IMO.
The Starbucks I referred to in my previous post is right across the street from the high school, which has an open campus. Actually, there are two Starbucks in that shopping center, but that's beside the point. (Or is it?) The one near my house is mostly full of suburban housewives and Realtors. I think it varies by location.
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