Features and Main Aspects of Business the Example of Starbucks - Essay Example

CHEN CHEN ENG 105 Good place for relaxation and sociality Background of Starbucks While today Starbucks is a stalwart of Western society, the company emerged from humble beginnings. The first Starbucks was established in 1971 in Seattle, Washington. Three separate business associates owned the first Starbucks – Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker (Schultz). The name was taken from the name of a character in Herman Melville’s seminal novel Moby Dick. This early incarnation of Starbucks is very different from the modern day version. For instance, the Italian names of the coffee, such as venti, did not yet exist. Furthermore, the nature of having exotic and unique versions of coffee was a number of years off. Indeed, the company didn’t even serve coffee, only selling coffee beans. Still, the shop was widely successful in the Seattle area through its strong business practices and establishment of a community atmosphere. In 1982 a traveling salesman named Howard Schultz visited the coffee shop. Schultz had just returned from a business trip in Italy and attempted to convince the owners of the shop that they should begin selling coffee and adopt the Italian expressions (Schultz). At first the owners rejected Schultz offer, believing that it was antithetical to their business model. Schultz would go on to establish his own coffee chain named ll Giornale with the Italian novelty. In 1987 Schultz convinced the owners of Starbucks to sell their business. Schultz would go on to combine his business model with Starbucks and form much of the version that persists through the modern day (Schultz). Among later day changes includes Starbucks expansion into in-store music sales. This occurred as a Starbucks manager used to play unique music in the store and the customers would ask about the music he was playing. After a period upper-level management had the idea to create and sell Starbucks mixed compact discs. From Schultz initial involvement in 1987 Starbucks would expand from the Seattle region to most other states throughout America, and then throughout a plethora of countries internationally. While the organization experienced challenging times during the recession, they still remain the world’s preeminent coffee shop and have began expansion into Asian markets. High quality services and nice environment I stood outside the Starbucks establishment and surveyed the people who were entering the building. Most of them were alone and well dressed, like they were taking a break from work. Others were in small groups who, perhaps, just wanted to have a conversation over a cup of coffee. There was a wide variety of ages that were represented. Many of them appeared to be high school students. I walked towards the front door, opened it, and stepped inside. I did not have to walk very long to end up at the end of the line. Everyone was standing there and waiting. Many of them looked like they were already used to this process. Everyone, except the group of high school girls near the front, were staring off and not making eye contact with anyone. I could smell what could only be described as brand name coffee as I made my way towards the front of the line. The barista who took my order looked tired, even though it was only the early afternoon. I ordered a tall hot chocolate before realizing that Starbucks had created their own language for orders that was universal in all their branches. No matter what the country was. Before I had even moved, the cashier was already taking the order of the person behind me. The barista then passed my order to the person who was preparing the coffees. He looked to be a college student and this was probably his part time job. He must have had a good memory since he was preparing the beverages one after the other without stopping. There were three orders before mine and I waited until my order appeared on the stand in front of me. The person who was preparing the coffee then paid no more attention to me as he continued working. I took my tall hot chocolate and went to sit on one of the comfortable chairs in the back so I wouldn’t be disturbed. It was warm inside of Starbucks and the hot chocolate I was sipping only made me feel warmer. I stared at the Starbucks label on the white cup. Starbucks was more than just coffee; Starbucks was a brand. People could buy coffee from anywhere. However, there wasn’t another coffee shop that I could think of which had a brand as powerful and status setting as the one Starbucks had created. Different people in the shop I began to observe the people around me. Generally, there was no interaction between people who had not come together. It seems that Starbucks had created an environment that a diverse audience could come to in order to be alone. Many people had long finished their coffee and were sitting and talking over empty cups. I couldn’t see anyone who had bought the food that was sold at Starbucks. Starbucks was not famous for its food; it was famous for its coffee. This was a good thing since the menu from Starbucks was pretty bad. However, the coffee was good enough and the brand was powerful enough to keep people coming back. I didn’t feel awkward sitting alone since there were many other individuals who were also sitting by themselves. There was a man sitting on his laptop a few tables away from me. He was not really touching his coffee and his attention was fixed on the screen. It was obvious that he had not come for the coffee; but for the free Internet access that the establishment provided. He did not look approachable and it didn’t seem that he would be in danger of anyone approaching him here. He seemed to become agitated at the slightest noise that was too loud. However, despite all of the people, it was rather quiet in Starbucks. The man continued to stare at the screen. He reached to pick up his coffee, and set it back down before typing furiously. He was probably in the middle of something important. However, the clicking noise that the keys on his laptop made when he typed was louder and more distracting than the other sources of noise in the store. He didn’t seem to mind the noise he was making, though. He only minded noise that bothered him. I viewed another table where a men and a woman were seated and talking. I was not able to tell if they were on a date or not, but I was able to eavesdrop on their conversation. The two were dressed in casual but nice clothing. The man wore glasses and the woman had a scarf that she removed halfway through the conversation. Their topics of conversation varied greatly, but it was evident that both individuals were educated. They spoke about such intellectual topics as books and literature, as well as movies and politics. Other areas of conversation included people they mutually knew. Finally they began to discuss their goals and positions in life. I found this subject of particular interest and paid close attention. In these conversations the woman discussed how she planned on teaching English abroad. The man talked about his profession as an English teacher and the challenges he was having with his students. Both of them framed their intentions in life in a slightly romantic and idealistic way of seeing. The group of high school girls that I had seen earlier was occupying one of the couches closer to me. In opposition to the man, they were speaking animatedly to one another and completely engrossed in their conversation. However, unlike most high school girls, their voices appeared to be controlled. It was as though the atmosphere of Starbucks had cast a blanket of volume control over them. They were youthful and kept trying to cut each other off in mid-sentence. It was as though the words they wanted to say would disappear if they didn’t get them out fast enough. Their expressions seemed to be identical at certain times with a two second delay between the person telling the story and those listening. This sort of mimicry probably meant that they had either understood or sympathized with the speaker. It was like a game of Simon Says where everyone repeated the speaker’s moves when it was appropriate to do so. Still, there was a sort of reverence among these girls, as if they were in a library environment, that kept them from acting too expressively. I turned my attention to the couple seated by the window. His hand was on hers as he spoke to her. She was making a point of staring out of the window. Her body was angled away from his and he was leaning forwards. Their coffee was set before them, but they didn’t seem to be touching it. I believe that they had chosen Starbucks as a place in which they could speak privately. However, they realized too late that they really weren’t as alone as the atmosphere had made the coffee drinkers feel. It appeared that he was doing all of the talking while she was pretending not to listen. I believe that she was listening since her head was tilted towards him. When he stopped speaking, she would turn her head slightly to look at him and then continue staring out of the window without saying anything. Well, at least she was letting him hold her hand. The establishment of Starbucks is an art From surveying all of these people, I learned that there was an art to entering and staying in a Starbucks establishment. There was no interaction amongst the other customers and limited interaction with the staff. While this was observed, it’s not entirely clear if this is indicative of my specific experience or the general Starbucks experience throughout the nation. The food at Starbucks was rarely bought; but it would be strange to walk into Starbucks and buy a food or dessert without buying one of their branded cups. It was as though some sort of beverage was an unspoken, mandatory purchase. It’s also notable that the coffee is of relatively high cost as compared to coffee purchase in other establishments. I walked out of Starbucks with my unfinished, tall hot chocolate in my white Starbucks cup with the green brand label. It was only because it would be absurd to walk out of the establishment without one. When considering the nature of Starbucks there are a number of further concerns. In qualitatively assessing the customers’ interactions both with each other and with the establishment itself it’s clear there are some prominent themes. One consideration is that while Starbucks functions as a coffee shop, it’s also clear that the people inside are paying for more than just coffee. In these regards, it’s clear that the store’s atmosphere and ambiance is perhaps the driving reason that the franchise is able to charge what would otherwise be exorbitant prices for its coffee. For instance, consider the man and woman discussing their lives, as well as books and intellectual subjects. For them, Starbucks represents a sort of intellectual meeting place. While it would be presumptuous to indicate that Starbucks represents a sort of religion, it has created a unique approach to life. Starbucks is an establishment where people can visit, converse, and study in an atmosphere that is at least ostensibly concerned with matters of culture, art, and intellect. Ultimately, the genius of Starbucks is the company’s ability to be entirely corporate and profit-centered in structure, but co-opt in appearance and customer experience the small-business feel. References Schultz, Howard. Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul. New York: Rodale Books. 2011. 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