It’s A Beautiful Day in the [Starbucks] Neighborhood
While reading through my Inbound Marketers updates on LinkedIn yesterday, I stumbled across a post by David Cameron, brand builder and communications strategist. A huge coffee lover, I was curious to see what his article “Is Starbucks’ neighborhood coffeehouse concept a good brand move?” was all about.
Apparently Starbucks has embarked on a new business approach, building neighborhood coffee houses in addition to their regular stores. 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea in Seattle is the first of three that are planned for the city and is expected to open tomorrow. The shops will be named after each neighborhood where they’re located instead of having the behemoth corporate name. True to Starbucks fashion, they’ll offer coffee – of course – pastries, live music and poetry readings. Unlike traditional Starbucks, they’ll also offer wine and beer to appeal more to the after work crowd. As of now, Seattle is the only city experimenting with this.
On a CBSNews video clip, Morningstar analyst R.J. Hottovy says he thinks this is a bit of a business risk, while Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz said they needed to do something to adjust to the economy.
This move doesn’t surprise me at all, and personally, I think it’s a good idea. Starbucks is always trying to create a sense of “community” – charity drives to benefit Taiwan aboriginal children, AIDs research and relief, local farmers in Africa, literacy…I could go on and on…so creating neighborhood coffee shops seems like a natural move. From Starbuck’s Web site:
“It’s our commitment to do things that are good to each other and the planet. From the way we buy our coffee, to minimizing our environmental footprint, to being involved in local communities…”
I have to admit that as much as I hate paying $4 something for my favorite drink, non-fat, marble mocha macchiato (which I think should be added to the menu as a permanent offering J), I do get that sense of community every time I go into a Starbucks, making me feel ok about spending my money there.
David gave this Starbucks move a “Champ status,” on his blog, On Brands, and I would have to agree!
I love when Starbucks takes advantage of the natural architecture and decor style of its store locations – a lot of the older stores are like this. The one in Amherst, MA is in this weird-looking raised building with a series of ramps leading up to it, local art inside, and tons of windows. It really gives the place character and establishes that community feeling.
I don’t love the un-branding idea, only because I think it can come across as evading transparency. Customers might feel like they are being “tricked” into going to Starbucks. Why not, instead of just appearing to be authentic, actually be authentic?
LC