Starbucks has entered it's dark ages.

[hardcorestitch]

The Capitol Hill Roastery, which was a controversial Starbucks store near headquarters, is shutting down forever. It was among the 1% of stores shuttering for good due to company concerns regarding a quality in person environment.

 

[jimmymc]

What was controversial about it, and why does this signal a dark age for Starbucks?

They've had some financial troubles, but people aren't buying $6 coffees when the price of everything else is going up.

 

[hardcorestitch]

It was controversial for the reason of the store being the first to be unionized. Because of its close proximity to headquarters, whenever an issue arose in or around the company, it was often the target area for many protesters to stage.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Dark ages? It's just the Cycle of Starbucks- open stores, open too many stores, close stores. Rinse and Repeat every few years.

 

[disneyseniors]

I don't know too much about Starbucks, but have noticed that their customer base at one of our stores seems to be down. A new coffee shop "7" something (sorry I can't remember the name) is blue with blue neon trim. When I go by frequently, that new shop has double lines with at least 5 cars in each lane. The Starbucks, which is about l00 feet away on the same side of the road, has had a few cars each time - no double lines. Obviously this is an observation over several weeks. I am frequently in town during the week and it seemed noticable to me. Does this mean anything? I don't know. We have 3 Starbucks in our town, another coffee "cafe", and a family owned coffee shop which does big business. Maybe we are in "designer coffee overload", lol. I don't buy coffee anywhere but just make it at home so I can't say which is "best".

 

[_19disnA]

I agree about the 'open too many stores' thing. Our grocery store had a small Starbucks the last few years. Virtually across the street, Starbucks recently opened a standalone coffee shop. I can't imagine there being enough sales to sustain TWO stores virtually next door to each other.

 

[focusondisney]

It was controversial for the reason of the store being the first to be unionized.

Not if it’s in the US it wasn’t. The Elmwood Ave shop in Buffalo was in December of 2021.

https://www.npr.org/2021/12/09/1062150045/starbucks-first-union-buffalo-new-york

 

[citruscurtis]

I agree about the 'open too many stores' thing. Our grocery store had a small Starbucks the last few years. Virtually across the street, Starbucks recently opened a standalone coffee shop. I can't imagine there being enough sales to sustain TWO stores virtually next door to each other.

Our in store seems to be empty.. but it is off season here...so come November it may pick up... the stand alone is on the freeway so always swamped and as I learned the casino Starbucks franchise cannot truly be the loneliest in the USA... but hey.if on interstate 8 California Arizona it's located in the area of the most US historic interstate overpass... not enough film in your camera for all the history

 

[citruscurtis]

National news...be it at 25 minutes into news cast... skiing my Everest accompanied story...100s of stores

 

[barkley]

I agree about the 'open too many stores' thing. Our grocery store had a small Starbucks the last few years. Virtually across the street, Starbucks recently opened a standalone coffee shop. I can't imagine there being enough sales to sustain TWO stores virtually next door to each other.

we had open inside a grocery store that was located just steps away (same parking lot) as a stand alone location-made no sense whatsoever. the store recently did a renovation and that location is no more.

I know starbucks lost almost all of our business back in 2017 when they closed down their online store in a move to encourage people to visit their physical locations. we used to buy a decent amount of a couple of their whole bean coffees but it's not worth it to go to one of their locations. if we are going to get a coffee drink we will always opt for dutch brothers-better quality, better prices and they are always the FIRST business that steps up to help out in any local/regional emergency/tragedy/fund raising capacity.

 

[SteveH]

I get a bit of a laugh at Starbucks. I pass by two on my short drive to work, almost never a line, anymore, at either of them, it's even rare to see one car. However, same drive I go by Dutch Bros (HQ in Oregon but expanding East), it's very rare to see them not have a line of 10+ cars. Starbucks used to be unique, not any more. Since I don't drink coffee I have no vested interest, but I will say the crew at Dutch Bros is way more fun, no snobbery going on there.

 

[hardcorestitch]

I get a bit of a laugh at Starbucks. I pass by two on my short drive to work, almost never a line, anymore, at either of them, it's even rare to see one car. However, same drive I go by Dutch Bros (HQ in Oregon but expanding East), it's very rare to see them not have a line of 10+ cars. Starbucks used to be unique, not any more. Since I don't drink coffee I have no vested interest, but I will say the crew at Dutch Bros is way more fun, no snobbery going on there.

No private equity firm better lay a finger on Dutch Bros. Private equity is just a fancy way of saying “we want to ruin a good chain”.

 

[_19disnA]

Wouldn't surprise me to see in 5-10 yrs that Starbucks says they expanded too fast and opened too many stores. Their pricey/trendy coffee drinks could be old news and in the next downturn in the economy, probably one of the first ways that people start to cut back on their expenses.

 

[Cadiewampus]

Have a lot of Starbucks around us but I do not go often. Usually maybe 4 or 5 times during the year and most of those around the holidays. Only two things I get. Flat white or my favorite (especially when stopped up) medicine ball

 

[Praying Colonel]

I'm sure I'm not their target demographic, but their coffee and other drinks are way too expensive IMHO. I'll drink it when I have no other alternative.

 

[irlandaise]

I get a bit of a laugh at Starbucks. I pass by two on my short drive to work, almost never a line, anymore, at either of them, it's even rare to see one car. However, same drive I go by Dutch Bros (HQ in Oregon but expanding East), it's very rare to see them not have a line of 10+ cars.

Dutch Bros is actually moving their HQ to the Phoenix area (Tempe). From a news article:

"Its fastest-growing markets are in Texas and the Southeast. When Dutch Bros began expanding its corporate offices in Arizona last year the company said it wanted to be closer to those markets, and closer to a major airport so executives could quickly reach other cities."

Also probably not a coincidence that the CEO they hired a few years ago lives in Phoenix, which may also explain the move of more of the company's operations there even before this announcement.

 

[barkley]

I get a bit of a laugh at Starbucks. I pass by two on my short drive to work, almost never a line, anymore, at either of them, it's even rare to see one car. However, same drive I go by Dutch Bros (HQ in Oregon but expanding East), it's very rare to see them not have a line of 10+ cars. Starbucks used to be unique, not any more. Since I don't drink coffee I have no vested interest, but I will say the crew at Dutch Bros is way more fun, no snobbery going on there.

unlike dutch brothers I've never been in a line at starbucks and seen 2-3 employees out walking the line or cars with order tablets to expidite. dutch brothers order ahead system is AWSOME-we enter the order, pull into the designated spots and they bring us our drinks in a heartbeat

 

[fla4fun]

I don’t drink coffee, so I don’t really care from a consumer standpoint, but I do feel bad for the employees. I have been out of work for a while now, and just getting an interview is tough. Every time I hear about a big corporate downsizing, that’s who I think of first. Hopefully one of the other coffee chains will be hiring . . .

 

[Skittlesmom]

Expanding the number of stores too fast while dealing with unions, have increased costs for the company. Prices keep going up. If the stores are not turning a profit or are in areas that are not conducive to their business model, then stores have to close.

 

[barkley]

Expanding the number of stores too fast while dealing with unions, have increased costs for the company. Prices keep going up. If the stores are not turning a profit or are in areas that are not conducive to their business model, then stores have to close.

we've had at least 1 close in the last year or so directly due to safety concerns b/c what has historically been a reasonably safe area in that city has devolved into an area where a good number of drug users congregate (primarily those in the homeless community). the homeless were not the issues but the drug users aggressively panhandle so initialy Starbucks lost their walk-in clients and then when people were aggressivly approached while sitting in their cars it along with property damage and theft to the location had them closing up shop. this was a newer little strip mall with just a few shops with Starbucks' portion of the building obviously custom built to suit them-i have to imagine they sunk a good chunk of change into that place at minimum as it pertained to the lease (not uncommon here for 5-7 year minimum commercial leases). that city's problems with this issue pale with what is occurring all over the u.s. (and esp. what we here about on the west side of our state in the Seattle region) so I imagine that cuts into their profits as well.