Summer Food Fun and Drink 2009 Starbucks in decline - Chapter 4 · Thursday July 16, 2009 by colin newell
In a remarkably lame move, Starbucks is shape-shifting itself into a mom-and-pop neighborhood cafe in Seattle.
A Seattle outlet of the 16,000-store coffee behemoth is being re-branded without visible Starbucks identifiers, as 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea.
And they plan on going head to head with the likes of Victrola, Vivace, Cafe Vita, Cafe D’arte and Stumptown.
From my perspective, I think this latest Starbuck bait and switch is the height of cynicism and breathtakingly shortsighted – even for a foundering behemoth like the jolly green caffeine giant.
Recently I have compared the following chain coffee recently and here is my score…
Lame- Starbucks – Watery, thin, unremarkable… Americano with a puff of whisper thin crema
Slightly Lame- Tim Horton’s – Like their gut wrenching doughnuts, Tim’s coffee has nothing redeeming about it. Coffee flavored mouth wash. Remember, don’t swallow any!
Not so bad- McDonalds – Drip coffee thick enough to plasma cut steel plate. Delicious with an egg McMuffin.
Continuing on Starbucks Seattle plans… they also plan on serving beer and wine.
This marketing move from Coffee Oz northwest is baffling, amusing and kind of sad in a way. In this economy (if I was Howard Shultz), I would be holding my cards real close. But what the heck. Nothing ventured – nothing gained…
Just ignore the aging wizard behind the curtain.
Coffee blogging 2009 Chapter 1 Rancho Sao Benedito COE Lot 11
