I just had one of the worst Starbucks experiences of my life and it was not their fault. Coffee is a big part of my existence, as It is my primary source of nourishment and fuel, so I spend a lot of time in coffee shops, but this was way too long for a drink.
It was not until thinking about it for a while that I decided the employees of Starbucks were not really to blame. True, they were short staffed, but this is largely out of their control. I stood there while two people in a row decided to have 5-7 minute long conversations with the ONE guy manning the register. You could tell he just wanted to take the order and move them along, but he had to remain polite and answer the endless inane questions from these people. Someone ordered a bunch of the most complicated drinks of all time for what I can only assume was their ENTIRE office and then acted all pissed about how long it took. After one guy placed his order he decided to pull the "supervisor" aside and give him shit for a full five minutes, only leaving two employees actually working. Then there was the lady in front of me who placed her order in a huff and complained that it was not decaf when she got her drink, then asked them make it over for her, but she NEVER said decaf when she was ordering (just as an aside, decaf should be illegal)! I was right behind her and heard every word she said. The staff, of course, happily took the blame and remade her drink.
All of these people assumed that the fault was that of the employees of Starbucks and felt perfectly justified in treating them poorly for it. I think the attitude comes from this "the customer is always right" culture we have cultivated. I think it is time people understand that the customer can be wrong and is sometimes a dick. When you run into a situation like this it is important to recognize that it takes a group effort on the part of the customers to make the situation better. If you recognize any of the above actions as things you do, please fucking stop!
I know that this was WAY off topic here, so in an attempt to get things back on course, here is some coffee related art.
"skull"
Medium: coffee on lid
Brush: Starbucks coffee stirrer/plug thingy
"old woman"
Medium: coffee on lid
Brush: Starbucks coffee stirrer/plug thingy
I don't know why I feel more compelled to comment on this post than any of the others...I think it's because:
ReplyDeletea) I have fond memories of going to Starbucks with you in San Diego.
b) I didn't know that stirrer/plug thingy existed until you showed it to me!
c) YOU'RE SO RIGHT ABOUT CUSTOMERS OFTEN BEING WRONG.
d) I am blown away by the fact that you made incredible art with coffee and a plastic stirrer/plug thingy. Although you're a great artist, so I shouldn't be that surprised :)
When I am running my floor, I do not stand for such nonsense. If a customer has a problem, I handle the problem quickly and efficiently. I would not enable them to spend 5 minutes of my time with such nonsense.
ReplyDeleteI want to commission a series of these. I assume the cost is a starbucks card? (seriously, these are beautiful and awesome.)
ReplyDelete-webpablo
ps. I miss your musk.