Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Starbucks Kills Communities

The article.
"People immediately create their own little private, gated communities. You come in, set up your laptop and put on your headphones," he said yesterday. "You couldn’t be more alone in public if you wanted to be."
Also:
Prof Simon concluded that Starbucks’s success had little to do with the coffee and everything to do with image and identity. "Time and again customers told me they would look at someone carrying a Starbucks cup and assume they were successful and moderately hip," he said.
Seems like people who have worked there have been saying these sorts of things for years.

And one more:
A spokesman for Starbucks said it welcomed all customer feedback.

2 comments:

otis said...

Starbucks is only open in upmarket areas? I would cordially invite him to visit our friends over 30th and Broadway in Sacramento.

I bet this guy's nickname at the uni is "Grant Money Furnace".

Elex said...

Also, the alternative to "being alone in public" is probably "not being in public" Why not blame the iPod like everyone else. If people start hanging out regularly at a place, doesn't that make the place good for community? If I don't know you, I'm probably not going to talk to you regardless of what either of us are doing. If I do know you, I'm going to greet you, and you'll probably greet me back regardless of what either of us are doing.