I'm not a coffee drinker so I guess I don't "get" it, but I would imagine in most big cities with many Starbucks people will just drift along to the next closest location or other coffee shop/cafe type place. Things happen, people move on...
Go to this website www.chipotlefan.com/index.php?id=nutrition_calculator to find out just how bad for you it is. Never stops me from going, even though I live in a Tex-Mex capital. I love their guac.
Because of the franchises in grocery stores, I've seen two or three Starbucks shops in one parking lot. One in Target, one in Safeway, and one freestanding. Too much!!!! Why couldn't the extra free-standing Starbucks close? Instead, the corporation is closing the one at the truck stop 10 minutes away from town by the freeway. Now, I'll admit, when my husband and I are on a road trip, sometimes we need something caffeinated from Starbucks, and we'll stop if it's easy to see off the freeway.
S-bucks put one in right across from a mom and pop coffee shop. The mom and pop remains one of the main town hangouts.
@pooky:
To be fair, I can name 1 coffee shop in my town, and the three surrounding towns, that MAY have existed before Starbucks. My knowledge isn't encyclopedic, but if you wanted 'coffee' before Starbucks, people generally went to diners (what can I say? It's an NJ thing). On the other hand, I can name a dozen just in my town that have sprung up since the growth of Starbucks in the area.
If the loss of a Starbucks symbolizes the loss of a community then this society is in a sad and sorry state. I try to frequent the small mom& pop places first. I'll go to 7-11 for coffee before I'd walk into a Stabuck's.
@steveray: Olive Garden is one thing, but don't be hating on Walmart.
SamsClub & Walmart are vital to my survival. lol :)
@steveray: well said! I'm sure there is more important things to save than a billion-dollar corporation's profits at the moment.
"A loss of Starbucks symbolizes a loss of community"? haha
Isn't Wal-Mart's plan similar? Expand, kill off the competition, and close the store since consumers can drive to the one 10 or 15 minutes further away. Repeat. I'm sure we'll see "save our Wal-Marts!" soon.
SBUX may be closing stores, but how many of those "community" SBUX stores killed off a pre-existing coffee shop? I mentioned that SBUX in Arlington - that store was the only place to hang out because it did kill off a small bar/coffee shop half a mile down the road. (Why, as teenagers, we were allowed to hang out in either place is now beyond me.)
What's next, Save Our Walmart? Save Our Olive Garden?
Please. I can't cry a tear for Starbucks, when they helped to force most of the local college hangouts/coffee shops out in my city. Try going to a local restaurant or coffee shop for once. Why bother with a nationalized chain of crappy service and product yet again?
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