As the coffee giant pursues its goal of 40,000 stores, part of its strategy is to ensure potential customers don't have to wait too long or walk too far for their daily jolts of caffeine.
The people who work in Seattle's tallest building face a tough decision: Should they get their caffeinated indulgence at the old Starbucks on the building's first floor or the new Starbucks, 40 floors up? And if those lines are too long, is it too far to walk across the street, where a third Starbucks awaits?
Starbucks' recently announced goal of having 40,000 stores worldwide isn't just about spreading green awnings through Middle America, the Middle East and other parts of the world not yet tempted by easy access to mocha Frappuccinos and pumpkin-spice lattes.
The coffee chain's aggressive growth also hinges on what the company calls infill -- adding stores in cities where its mermaid logo is already commonplace. In some cases, that means putting a Starbucks within a block of an existing store, if not closer.
While Starbucks knows there's plenty to lure people into its coffee shops, it recognizes that many people won't walk very far, or wait very long, for an optional and pricey treat.
As of Oct. 3, Starbucks had 12,440 stores worldwide -- 7,102 company-operated stores and 5,338 licensed locations. In addition to choosing its company-operated locations, Starbucks has a say in where its licensed stores will open.
In Vancouver, Canada, such planning has meant adding stores on either side of a busy intersection. In New York, there are two Starbucks in one Macy's store, as well as two in the 49-story Marriott Marquis hotel.
Starbucks also is flooding some smaller cities. In Spokane, Wash., two Starbucks sit across from each other in a strip mall and a grocery store, close enough that baristas could toss pounds of coffee beans at one another if they wanted to.
Does America really need one of these shops on every corner? I think Americans blow to much money at this place and evntually this will just add to costs..hmm Starbucks
Obviously people like it.. I'm a starbucks fan.
I actually like having one everywhere I go because that's the only thing I eat when I'm out. To me drinking coffee is a substitute for eating. There's fast food on every corner, why not coffee too?
Oh, and I can do my homework online there too, that's pretty nice.