It’s 4:18 PM on a Wednesday. You just finished classes for the day and are beginning to feel that midweek exhaustion we all know too well. Starbucks is on your walk home, so you decide to stop in for a tall latte. However, something catches your eye. Is that alcohol on the menu? Soon, the answer will be yes.
Starbucks announced on Jan. 23, 2012 that they would be incorporating beer and wine into more cafes in chosen states. While Ohio is not a state yet included on this list, it is imaginable that this may be a growing business that will one day reach our own state. Starbucks first started this endeavor in 2010 in Seattle. Apparently it is doing well, because the company will be expanding the venture to as many as 25 locations by the end of this year. Their reasoning behind the idea is to increase business in the afternoon and evening hours, as business tends to slow after the morning hours.
What does this mean for our beloved café? We have to question how this will change the atmosphere typically associated with coffee shops. Our campus Starbucks is centrally located at the intersection of 14th Street and High Street. It is very convenient for many of the students to stop by before and after classes. If it were to begin serving alcohol, we have to wonder if it would compromise the previously more “chill” study/hang out environment.
Adding such “adult beverages” to Starbucks could have both positive and negative results. If students (who are 21 of course) could purchase beer and wine at Starbucks, I have a feeling there would be more of them spending the evening hours there to do things besides study. I am sure a college town coffee shop would only make more money by serving alcohol, which is a definite benefit. However, how would the students who use Starbucks as their regular study spot feel about this added feature? While I don’t foresee Starbucks becoming the next Charlie Bear, adding alcohol would have an impact on the atmosphere. How significant of an impact will be determined only when and if Columbus decides to adopt this new change.
Photo source: http://www.blonde20.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/starbucks-logo.jpg