Carborundum Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Walked past the new Starbucks today and it looked great - if it and the service are anything like the Leeds rail Station one I'll definitely give it a go - it is nice to finally have a choice in Sheffield - how about a few more choices now ... choice of bookshop, choice of chippie, choice of clothes shops, choice of internet cafe, choice of ... am I making myself clear ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carsondaly Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Went there for a coffee on Sunday. The place is nice and the atmosphere was good but a) the toilets were not working b) the coffee is expensive (i.e. nothing for less than about £1.60) c) the coffee was not that good. Don't know if I'd be rushing back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snook Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Originally posted by Patrick2000 it is nice to finally have a choice in Sheffield - how about a few more choices now ... choice of bookshop We'll probably have a Borders or Barnes and Noble soon, to go with the Best Buy, Subway, Starbuck, Wal-mart, MacDonalds, Chilis, Burger King, Woolworths, KFC, Gap, Game...etc etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick2 Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Originally posted by Snook We'll probably have a Borders or Barnes and Noble soon, to go with the Best Buy, Subway, Starbuck, Wal-mart, MacDonalds, Chilis, Burger King, Woolworths, KFC, Gap, Game...etc etc... Barnes & Noble is a great bookshop, I hope we do get one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snook Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Originally posted by nick2 Barnes & Noble is a great bookshop, I hope we do get one. I agree, and I hope so too. My point is, why are our stores so poor, and American stores come in and steal the custom? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick2 Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Originally posted by Snook I agree, and I hope so too. My point is, why are our stores so poor, and American stores come in and steal the custom? They're not all crappy, Waterstones is Ok, and there used to be a good bookshop on West Street, but thats about it I think in town. I think American shops are more service/customer oriented. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy C Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Originally posted by nick2 They're not all crappy, Waterstones is Ok, and there used to be a good bookshop on West Street, but thats about it I think in town. I think American shops are more service/customer oriented. They still have English staff in them though, so I don't buy that one. And in fact I would bet that a local indie coffee shop would probably be offer a friendlier and more personal service. I think the Yank chains are just more ruthless in their business practices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fyybj Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Global chains have far more buying power and source their materials far cheaper than local businesses. This allows them to boost their profit margins by keeping costs low but prices relatively high. Global chains can spend far more on marketing and advertising, to such an extent that they become household names while established local companies can barely afford to advertise in local papers. It's not as simple as choice, consumers can only choose between products/companies that they are aware of. This tips the scales in favour of large companies before you even consider the quality of the product. There's a reason the coffee in Starbucks isn't so great, that's because it's cheap crap sold onto the consumer for a high price. Yes, consumers have the right to choose the product that they buy, even if that means buying an inferior product at inflated prices from a company that employs unethical policies. It would be helpful to have this information available so that consumers can use this in making their choices, strangely enough, this information is usually limited or non existant. Remember though that while you are giving your hard earned cash to global companies that don't give a **** about the city/environment/community that you live in, local companies that buy locally, invest locally, live locally and trade fairly are being undercut and driven out of business. Eventually this will lead to problems with local economic development and a city that looks the same as every other US city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snook Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 Originally posted by fyybj Global chains have far more buying power and source their materials far cheaper than local businesses. This allows them to boost their profit margins by keeping costs low but prices relatively high. Global chains can spend far more on marketing and advertising, to such an extent that they become household names while established local companies can barely afford to advertise in local papers. It's not as simple as choice, consumers can only choose between products/companies that they are aware of. This tips the scales in favour of large companies before you even consider the quality of the product. This is all true, but a company doesn't just start out as a global chain, it has to build to that, and it just seems American companies do it better than anyone else. Maybe it was a case of right place, right time, when in the 50's America became such a huge power, and companies so big and it has continued since then. Starbucks seems like a strange case though, because they don't seem to offer a much better service, or a unique service. They don't spend huge amounts on advertising like other brands, and they have risen very quickly unlike many other global companies.... maybe a pact with the devil? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phanerothyme Posted October 5, 2004 Share Posted October 5, 2004 like coca cola, macdonalds and nike, starbucks sell lifestyle, not coffee. It's all in the hype. Why go to a coffee shop? For coffee? for a break? to meet someone? to be seen? all these and more reasons. The best places have no need of advertising as their customers do that for them. I still maintain that for a nice cup of coffee in unique atmosphere, cafe #9 is hard to beat. Never been to Starbucks, but I get the idea that they are all the same - which kinda turns me off. And when I worked in the City Centre, I was a regular at Zoobies - it's not the cheapest, but in town it's my preferred coffee stop because of the lovely people that run it and stunning location (and an art gallery next door). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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