Perhaps the era of Big Coffee is over. For much of the last two decades Starbucks has become a staple in the lives of many Americans who didn’t mind paying big bucks for their caffeine fix – but yesterday it was announced that they’ll shutter 600 underperforming stores.
Personally, I don’t think I’ve been inside a Starbucks more than twice in my life and I think both times I got hot chocolate or something along that line. I’ve never been a coffee drinker so don’t look for me to shed many tears over the demise of a company that came of age at just about the same time the Seattle grunge movement supplanted 80’s hair band rock. Neither of those two developments were welcomed with open arms by me, although I will admit to liking Nirvana much more than those power ballads that the hair band movement had descended to. Nirvana jumped the shark when they were among the first to do an “unplugged” concert – me, I like plugged and loud.
Anyway, this decision by the coffee company could open up all sorts of opportunities for entrepreneurs who want to secure space in relatively new buildings or leaseholds, as many of the stores being closed had only opened in the last two years. (That brings a little bit of joy to my heart too, as long as the clients can pay up.) However, it also puts the proverbial Starbucks barista (an art history major with a nose ring and snooty attitude) in a position where he or she needs to find a real job.
While I don’t think Starbucks will go the way of green stamps or New Coke anytime soon, it’s another reminder that frills are the first to go in an economy that’s barely showing growth. A gallon of gas is a much more important use of $4 than a large cup of coffee.
