Starbucks shows its challengers why it is the leading coffee chain once again
In the past, a consumer who wanted to go into Starbucks to hang out and talk with friends could only do so by purchasing food or a drink. As of Saturday, that is no longer the case.
A few weeks ago, two black men, Rashon Nelson and Dante Robinson, went into a Philadelphia Starbucks and did not order anything; consequently, they were arrested.
Clearly, this was a public relations nightmare for Starbucks, as a video of their arrest went viral. Many people threatened to boycott the coffee chain until changes were made, and some actually protested outside of that Philadelphia Starbucks location.
CEO Howard Schultz, in an attempt to save the face of the franchise, unveiled this new policy. Now, anyone can sit and relax in any Starbucks location, even if they do not purchase anything.
From a public relations standpoint, this was a brilliant move by Starbucks. Letting this go would have hurt their brand drastically.
In fact, Schultz decided to go the extra mile and ensure that this problem would not come to fruition again. Starbucks will be closing over 8,000 stores on May 29thso that it can hold a racial-bias training for its employees.
The decision came during after-hours trading, but it is likely that Starbucks (SBUX) shares will jump slightly on Monday.
Plus, aside from the public relations boost, the decision is likely to boost revenue. If people come in and hang out, they are likely to want to buy something at some point. Chances are, they will get hungry or thirsty, so this policy is likely to help their sales.
Overall, this new policy will only help the coffee empire. It seems that Schultz and his company are invincible to any challenges they face.
Featured image via Pixabay/Engin_Akyurt
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