Summer fun food and drink - Starbucks in decline chapter two · Thursday July 10, 2008 by colin newell
Listen here for our radio interview today… Flash thingie below – if you cannot see that, click here for the mp3.
Starbucks in decline chapter two
“We are immune to economic ups and downs!” At the dawn of the 21st century, that has always been the bleat of the Starbucks upper Echelon.
While most restaurants feel the squeeze in hard times, as consumers stay home for more Mac and Cheese, Starbucks’ Vente-latte-sipping well-to-dos will keep coming back for more. Or so the economic theory dictates.
Truth is – luxury brands attract premium customers who are less sensitive to economic swings. Better job security and more income to ride out the lows. “When Starbucks continued to rack up impressive gains through 2002 and 2003, analysts went so far as to label the company “recession-proof.” Like the Titanic I suppose.
The past few years have seen a multi-faceted rebuild and re-branding of the Starbucks mission. In its insatiable desire for unchecked growth, the company automated too much of the artistry once known as specialty Coffee. Out with the La Marzocco manual machines – and in with robotic coffee. Starbucks as a therapeutic “alternative – not the home not the office space” for its customers, has given way to drive-through windows, interstate off-ramp kiosks and questionable reconstituted greasy breakfast sandwiches and Cd shills.
Two sucker punches come along. Overbuilding and under-training, and coffee that suffered – even to my grizzled taste buds. As people became more educated about what a real coffee should taste like (thanking Starbucks in the 80’s): consumers sought out the mom-and-pop coffee shops (in the U.S. up 40 per cent to 14,000) — with an seemingly endless cortège of thirsty Starbucks refugees.
During one of its costume changes, Starbucks has attracted a new type of customer, one drawn to the fashion statement of the specialty coffee experience, but lacking the requisite bling to sustain a daily double-tall Vente Macchiato habit.
So, the U.S. housing market collapses – a threat of layoffs, these lower- and middle-income Americans are forgoing the to-go cups. Caramel lattes or a a gallon of gas? Gas wins.
They wanted to win everyones heart in order to sustain their growth – and have ended up leaving us with a caffeine withdrawal induced headache – that isn’t going away anytime soon.
Remember this? Chairman Howard Schultz once said coffee drinkers who try out cheaper competitors will upgrade to Starbucks.
“Those consumers over time are going to trade up. They’re going to trade up because they are not going to be satisfied with the commoditized experience or the flavor,” he said.
Your right Howard. We got sick of the flavor. And we moved on.
Thanks for the memories.
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Summer fun food and drink - flowers and travel · Tuesday July 8, 2008 by colin newell
If you are like me, and living in the month of July… ah, like me. You are probably wondering what you would like to do this summer. Better get on it now. Because summer… for some of us… is here.
And let me just say this: Summer in Victoria B.C. Canada is a pretty subtle thing. It arrives… gradually. Sometimes by surprise. And it is a curious thing… because Victoria B.C. Canada does not actually experience seasons. I would hard pressed to explain how there is much difference between night and day.
Photo above – Took this (last night) with my Canon EOS-30D dSLR and a F2.5 55MM Macro Lens at Government House, Rockland, Victoria B.C. Canada
Seasons (and summer) is a funny thing here. On any given day in June, July and August, it might average 22 degrees © for 70 something (F). It is a rare thing indeed when the temperature rises to 30 – and when it does, it too arrives in a subtle way – like overnight. One day it is 22… and then it is 30 for a couple of days… then it is cool again. Anyway. I am getting off track.
If you live here you are busy planning your get-away. If you are a resident of Phoenix, Arizona, (for example) where the average temperature during the day is about 325 (F) then you have your sights on Victoria as a destination. Because Victoria (compared to Arizona) is the equivalent of stepping from a blast furnace into a mountain stream.
And as you can see from the top photo above, the flowers are insane here. This was one of dozens of different kinds of roses that were fully in bloom. I think I saw every color of rose except for Green and dark blue. I saw every other web safe color in the Government House garden. Click on the photos above for a mind-blowing enlargement. Mind blowing. Hmm. Showing my age with expressions like that. Let’s try this. The green in Victoria is dope and if you stay in Phoenix this summer you are, like, whack. There. Better.
Hey. Quick piece of travel advice if you are flying from anywhere in the U.S. into Canada – particularly Victoria B.C. Canada… and you are wearing a T-Shirt. Many people wear T-Shirts right? Make sure there is a pleasant and non-violent message on your T-Shirt. Examples:
-Anything with Kittens, Puppies, Flowers (like the ones above), American flags and pictures of Jesus are good.
-Things like guns, rifles, grenades, and Peace signs are definitely a no-no. Go figure. Cartoon characters like Transformers: Bad! Especially if they are holding ray-guns. Ray-guns bring down airplanes you know! Here is the T-Shirt in question.
Also. Avoid words on your T-Shirt like Boom, Bang, Attack, Peace or any script in any language other than English… because if it ain`t English it looks like Arabic to the TSA.
So. Play it safe folks and silk-screen one of my flower pictures onto your travel safe T-Shirts.
And Bon Voyage!
Uhm. That means Safe Travel for those that do not understand Arabic.
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Summer all food, fun and drink marathon - Vote for your favorite cafe · Wednesday July 2, 2008 by colin newell
When you are sitting in one of Victoria B.C.‘s many fine cafes, you cannot help but notice the very hipness of the scene here. We are, arguably, in the middle of a rennaisance in cafe culture and Victoria is a leader in style and overall quality – comparable to Seattle, Vancouver and Portland, Oregon – 3 important intellectual leaders in the coffeehouse happening.
So, there is lots to pick from in this city.
But if you are a fan of the coffee scene in Victoria, which one really appeals to you above all others?
Another good question is: Are your coffee needs being served here? Although we have all kinds of java joints, seemingly something for everyone – it is entirely possible that something is missing. If so, let us know.
In the meantime, pop over here and take our feature poll.
Conversely, you can blip us in the comment fields below.
Thanks!
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The quirky the funny the silly in Canadian living · Monday June 30, 2008 by colin newell
We get a magazine from time to time… with our daily paper. It comes along maybe once a month.
And not everyone gets it. We get it because we live in a somewhat Chi chi neighborhood… and we are renters… for now. heh-heh heh-heh heh-heh.
This magazine is a tome to conspicuous consumption, to gratuitous excess, to the joy of being all that you can be… better. It represents about 1/10 of 1% of the local population in terms of net worth.
Photo below – The magazine picture above is a spoof of the one that I am talking about. Click it for the full meal deal
So, if you are not driving a Mercedes-Benz, or a Bentley, or a Jaguar – then your are definitely not worthy of reading these gold stained pages.
But it begs the question – who the heck reads this stuff and buys all these gilded products; botox treatments, solid gold-plated bathroom fixtures, kilo-buck spa weekends and real estate listings that boggle the imagination?
Anyone?
It is Un-Canadian. Canadians are a modest lot – and we do not flaunt it… whatever it is. And yet this magazine exists. Full of ads of Real-Estate agents that only sell zillion dollar houses… and lawyers for rich people that have gotten themselves into a pickle and plastic surgeons for those occasions when the lawyer cannot get you out of the pickle and you need to change the appearance of the pickle.
Get my drift? No?
Anyway – in this, the first in a continuing series on Canadian oddities in our society, I will peck very gently at the delicate gold plated under carriage of Canuck society.
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