Real Not Real

The benefits of Web 2.0 and the detritus of globalization have spurred companies to be more authentic and transparent with consumers. This is no secret, but it’s a concept that presents unique challenges to large consumer-facing businesses, and it sits in direct opposition to economies of scale. As the world has become more designed (for better or worse), the need for individuality and localization has become more dire. This yearning for individuality has been addressed by everything from the local food movement to the rise of Twitter to handwritten headlines on magazines’ covers (see Domino, NYLON and Rachael Ray). Consumers crave forums for feedback and a feeling of involvement and conversation. And corporations (the smart ones) know the basics of consumer behavior: the greater customer involvement, the more loyal a customer becomes. It doesn’t hurt that, in the end, customer care is a benevolent cause.

Outside Starbucks' new 15th Ave Coffee & Tea in Seattle's Capitol Hill

But enough theorizing. I’m wrapping up the summer with a quick trip to Seattle–a new place for me. Granted, I live in San Francisco, a city with a similar eco-friendly, power-to-the-people vibe. But I’ve been impressed with Seattle’s various neighborhoods, each with a well-designed but unpretentious feel. This city is a nice one.

After a trip to the obligatory Pike Place open-air market, a friend and I headed to Capitol Hill to check out one very earnest attempt at corporate authenticity: Starbuck’s new stealth store, 15th Ave Coffee & Tea. Say what you will about how this store has ripped-off the design of other local coffee shops (of which I’m not familiar since I don’t live here), but I thought the shop did a decent job of being true to their mission of serving individual cups of coffee and tea.

When I walked in with a friend, the guy behind the counter welcomed us and asked if we’d ever visited. He explained the types of beans (you pick your own from about six choices), the types of brewing (three methods), the types of tea (six options). We had a look around, were free to take pictures (that alone was a HUGE plus in my book), and were told that there was live music each night. To boot, they serve wine and beer which I really like about local coffee houses (Cosi and Xando do this on a mass scale–which I think gives them a leg-up against Starbucks in the DC market).

ABOVE: pick your coffee beans (center), pick your tea leaves (right)

Overall, I like 15th Ave’s design. Sure, it’s corporate-ish in its finishes, in its consideration, in its mismatched-yet-coordinating style. The sign on the front door that reads “INSPIRED BY STARBUCKS” is more than annoying, as I think the language should’ve been more transparent, less touchy-feely. Why not “By Starbucks” or “A Starbucks Concept Store”? I wish Starbucks had taken a cue from brands like Apple or Target or American Apparel on this small detail. These brands would have no issue labeling a new project a “concept store”… and I wish Starbucks would just call it what it is… because there didn’t seem to be an ounce of inspiration from the ‘Bucks in this small shop.

Bloggers and Seattleites have had a time with this shop. After a regular Starbucks closed for “remodeling”, and after executives had perused the neighborhood with clipboards making notes about this and that, the store re-opened with a new concept. It has been accused of stealing paint colors, stealing seating choices, even stealing the shop’s naming convention. And while I don’t have a lot of interest in addressing those issues here, they deserve to be noted. This shop was put together in little more than 3 months, so I think it’s safe to assume that a fair amount of borrowing went into the design.

ABOVE: "hand-stamped" cups that are actually printed; table made of a door

What’s the hope for this project? It’s not hard to connect the dots here…

Back in 2007, Starbucks’ CEO Howard Schultz wrote a memo stating that Starbucks had lost its soul. The memo was leaked, and all hell broke loose. This was during the time that McDonald’s initiated the Newman’s Own coffee line, and that Starbucks retaliated by offering slightly-upscale breakfast sandwiches (now being phased out). True, maybe Starbucks had become something that was far from its Seattle roots, but many thousands of Americans had grown to love that ubiquitous ‘Bucks. Starbucks was consistent, relatively clean, offered decent food, and the retails spaces were at times oases in urban dead zones (and later, signs of mundane sophistication in suburban sprawl and beacons of civilization in more rural areas). In Manhattan they became symbols of free air conditioning, clean bathrooms, and their cups were neutral-yet-stylish accessories (see also Miranda in the Devil Wears Prada).

This example of a mass-scale brand exuding some level of urban-cool hasn’t been lost, despite the beating the brand has taken in its comparisons to McDonald’s (the Starbucks cup is still a sign of nonchalant sophistication in the same way Evian water was in the early ’90s). It’s true that with the “green,” Slow Food, and locavore movements of the last five years, Starbucks might be losing some of its polish…but what it’s losing in urban settings it’s more than making up for in suburban sprawl. Every mommy needs her latte.

ABOVE: the interior

So is this concept store doing its job? Is it bringing Starbucks back to its Pike Place roots? Closer to “the people?” Closer to authentic customer interaction? I can’t help but think this venture seems slightly off in its strategy.

In theory, I love the idea that Starbucks could launch a sub-brand and thoughtfully create a more user-centered customer experience. It’s nice to think about companies extending their personalities and creating multiple offerings under a single, authoritarian umbrella. There is little doubt that Starbucks knows consistent coffee, so the idea that they’d branch out into inconsistent coffee brewed cup-by-cup is interesting at the least. And if companies are to become more human (an idea I like), it’s great to see a huge one taking a risk and entering uncharted territory.

ABOVE: kraft paper on rolls with handwritten specials, fake handwriting on fake blackboards, coffee beans at bottom

But while this store can provide market research back to Starbucks and the parent brand, the prototype doesn’t have enough changing variables to really provide much information. This store serves less as a prototype for the Starbucks brand and more as a disconnected sub-brand. The end result of 15th Ave Coffee and Tea isn’t to help Starbucks reclaim its soul, but rather to help the company target a demo that long-left the flagship McCoffeeShop.

My thoughts? I’m in partial agreement with Peter Merholz (writing for the HBR blog, but also partner at Adaptive Path in SF)… don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. If Starbucks has evolved to be the McDonald’s of coffee, choosing to see that as an asset isn’t a bad thing (especially considering the sheer retail footprint of stores across the globe). The consistency of the experience has become integral. The 15th Ave model will never replace my need for traditional Starbucks. So for the parent brand, why stop selling those (delicious) breakfast sandwiches? Compete with McDonald’s if you must. Offer $.99 coffee. Give me a drive-through in suburbia. But add a few “nice-to-haves” into the mix. For one, even McDonald’s offers free wifi now. Dump your T-Mobile partnership and make this service free. Add stroller parking to your kid-friendly neighborhood locations. Add docking stations for electronics a la JetBlue’s T5 terminal at JFK. Each of these small design features would add a bit of benevolence to your offering. And to top it off, become a bit more aggressive with your recycling efforts in your packaging, and add a few more charitable products as you have with Ethos water and The GOOD Sheet (by GOOD magazine). (Or, take the advice of a Starbucks’ employee in Virginia, who is offended by the idea that ‘Bucks doesn’t already connect to communities… she suggests communicating with employees more, empowering managers, adding a drip-coffee-only line during busy hours, among other changes).

In the end, I think the concept shop is great…it’s a very human experiment for a very corporate brand. But the beauty of Starbucks is its massive reach in big towns and small across the planet. Incorporating even small changes into these existing retails spaces would do more (and more immediately) than a single concept store. And that’s not something to overlook… especially in this market.