If she were a guy, I would be tempted to say that I've got a man-crush on Canadian Business' retail correspondant Zena Olijnyk's insightful analyses. But she's not a guy, so it would sound creepy and weird to say that.
Regardless, Ms Olijnyk has a great new essay about Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz and his ruminations that the ubiquitous coffee shop has lost it's message.
Canadian Business: Has Starbucks gone sour?
In a Feb. 14 internal memo, leaked to the website StarbucksGossip.com, Schultz says that the rapid expansion of the franchise has caused a "watering down of the Starbucks experience" and a "commoditization of our brand" that makes the company vulnerable to competitors. Specifically, Schultz points to recent innovations such as the use of automatic espresso machines, which he claims have "removed much of the romance and theater" of watching the baristas make it by hand. He also mentions the decision to use "flavor-locked" packaging rather than continuing the practice of grinding beans in the store. This has led to "the loss of aroma," which Shultz says was "perhaps the most powerful non-verbal signal we had in our stores" about what the Starbucks experience is supposed to be like.
Ms Olijnyk goes on to outline the steps she feels Starbucks should take to fine-tune their brand message. A great read, all in all.
Personally, I dislike Starbucks' coffee. That burned, sour taste puts me off. I have patronized Second Cup for years. As much as I like foofoo specialty drinks oozing with whipped cream and sprinkles, I primarily enjoy black, unadorned coffee, and Second Cup's coffees taste good on their own, you don't need to disguise them as desserts to choke them down. Second Cup's blends are, to my palette, superior to the chalky-tasting slop that Starbucks offers.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Starbucks Chairman airs concerns over brand
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