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".