COFFEE SHOP - Research Project for Dr. Gaffney's Urban Social Geography at UNC

powerpoint

2007-10-04T12:21:00.001-07:00

Final outlook

2007-10-03T08:37:00.000-07:00

Question

How does the perception of a coffee shop alter between a store such as the Chapel hill Starbucks, a corporately owned giant, and Caffé Driade, an independently owned store?

Methodology

In order to better understand the answer to our question more thoroughly it might be helpful to understand how the group went about doing the research necessary and the process of discovery.

Where?

We visited both Starbucks and Caffé Driade on Franklin Street, assuming they were both quality representations of corporate and independently owned coffee shops.

What?

We searched to discover more about the distinct imagination and perception of the two stores.

Who?

We interviewed the managers, as well as, the customers within both stores.

Why?

Even beyond the perception or imagination of coffee shops, we wanted to discover more about the characteristics of different socio spaces within a city and their reflection, as well as, interaction within the culture.

When?

The project as a whole relates to culture today and to perceptions that have developed within recent years. The research of our project, however, was conducted specifically in the afternoon.

How?

In order to acquire information on the perception and imagination relevant to both coffee shops, we interviewed management, as well as, customers within the shops. We were sure to seek information which affects perception and can be linked to other key characteristics of a socio space such as signs, symbols, flows, economics, history, movement and access.

Findings

To analyze our research we looked once again at the question and broke it down into two elements, being the perception of Starbucks, as a corporately owned industry, followed by the perception of Caffé Driade, as an independently owned shop. After discovering the unique perceptions of both stores, it became easier to draw comparisons between the two.

Perception of Starbucks

When most people think of Starbucks, they think of coffee, or more specifically, they think of a favorite Starbucks original, such as, a “tall caramel frappuccino.” As a corporate giant, Starbucks sells a large variety of products and caters to a large range of people. It has grown as an icon for popular culture. Some go to Starbucks with friends to engage in social discourse, others go to study, but still most go for a quick caffeine fix. After interviewing both customers and management our group discovered that the majority of clientele stay within the store no longer than ten minutes. Consumers come in, order a drink they see as consistently satisfying, in a cup which is always disposable, and exit the same door they entered. In this perception, the characteristic of flow and movement becomes relevant. Even the prepackaged sandwiches and paper cups encourage customers to leave after their purchase.

The largest reason for visiting Starbucks seems to be its familiarity and convenience, which are results of being such a widely popular and distributed corporation. Employees within the store were quick to note how little advertisement is necessary to keep the store open. The sign of Starbucks alone draws people in because people already know what to expect when they walk through the door. They are familiar with the menu already, as well as the atmosphere. People see Starbucks as a reliable source for coffee. The Chapel Hill Starbucks is located so close to campus that students find it convenient. The fact that the stores are numerous in their number across the country makes convenience a quality of Starbucks in most regions.

As a corporation, Starbucks maintains a uniform atmosphere throughout the distribution of its stores, which is a key factor in general perception. Each store is decorated and furnished by the corporate employees rather than those who make the coffee in the location daily. Employees within each store are trained in customer relations and are asked to adhere to a specific dress code, which includes a hat and apron depicting the Starbucks logo. Even the music selection, coming through the speakers, as well as, in the merchandise rack are predetermined to promote consistency between stores.

Looking at the economics of the store, the footprints of corporate ownership reveal themselves. In effect, our perception of Starbucks changes in the knowledge that the store is meant to appeal to a hoard of consumers. The beans used to produce the coffee are machine picked and cultivated by the masses in large fields half way around the world. The price of coffee is driven down by the presence of mega-companies such as Starbucks within the market who appeal to the largest demographic of consumers. Evidence of the corporation’s mass clientele also surfaces in the fact that the music within the store is economized. Starbuck’s musical selection is now available for purchase on itunes. The music chosen at Starbucks attempts to hold a strong “artsy/indie” vibe without straying far from the tastes of popular culture.

Perception of Caffé Driade

When most people think of Caffé Driade, a variety of details come to mind. Some customers think of the consistently satisfying espresso that the café is famous for. Others think possibly of their favorite regularly ordered drink. Some think of the quality and production of the coffee in general. Still others think of the atmosphere of Caffé Driade, which plays such a huge part in its perception.

People come to Caffé Driade generally with the intention to stay in the store while drinking their coffee. It seems as though every aspect of the café encourages the perception that this is more than a place to get a satisfying cup; this is a place to socialize, to express yourself, to enjoy your atmosphere. Unless the customers specify otherwise, drinks are presented not in disposable to-go cups, but rather in ceramic mugs. In an interview, the barista was quick to point out that those customers who initially run in to pick up a cup of coffee on their way to work, soon find themselves habitually coming in with an hour to spare before work just so they can sit down and enjoy the coffee. Even the design of the building promotes the idea of staying to relax. As an independently owned store, the owner is able to utilize this design in a way that reflects his own imagination for a coffee shop. There are several different doors leading out from the main room to places to sit around the café. There is even a pathway leading from the back patio to another location down the hill in the woods. The environment of the café is very natural, for all the doors remain open; therefore the distinction between the inside and outside sitting areas blur. Not only is the perception of the store affected by its architecture, but by its emphasis on a sense of community. The barista stressed the importance of regular customers to the café’s social atmosphere. On specific weeknights, the café becomes a venue for live entertainment as local artists come to play music and patrons come to enjoy the night over a drink. Although the atmosphere on these nights is much livelier than on the average weekday, the concept and basic perception remains the same: customers come to sit and enjoy themselves.

A distinct aspect which affects Caff Driade’s perception is that, being independently owned, there are few regulations for employees to follow while running the store. The music is chosen by whoever is working at the time according to their personal tastes. Customer service is not a priority emphasized by management, so baristas simply act as they would naturally while interacting with customers. There is no dress code enforced upon employees either. The only point emphasized by management is that employees consistently produce a quality cup of coffee.

Only part of making that quality cup comes from the barista’s skill; the source of the ingredients must also be taken into account. As owners of a small business, which does not cater to half of the consumers as would a large corporation, but rather a smaller demographic, the owners of Caffé Driade specifically choose what beans they will allow to be used in the shop. All of the beans used by the café are handpicked and transported form various countries around the world. This use of resources promotes fair trade within the coffee industry and aids the economies in developing countries.

Conclusion

In discovering the common and differentiated aspects of perception between Starbucks, a corporately owned giant, and Caffé Driade, an independently operated store, we found that both are viewed as third places within a dynamic university town known as Chapel Hill. A third place is a neutral area of local community, as well as, of public interest where socio-spatial barriers are broken, regularity is a common component, and interaction is a defining theme. The two coffee shops differ, however, in their adherence to the definition of a third space, as well as, their degree of classification within a cultural context. People see Caffé Driade as a place to sit and be social, much more so, than Starbucks, where the tendency of most customers is to make a purchase and leave. Also, Caffé Driade is perceived as a space of bourgeois cultural capital, with its specialty drinks, support for local independent artists, and atmosphere of personal expression. All of the qualities which deem the café so unique are birthed from the feature that the store is independently owned and operated. The owner has the freedom to bequeath his own imagination of a café onto the location and lay upon the name Caffé Driade, exactly the perception that he wishes to grant his store. Starbucks, however, is perceived as an icon of popular culture. Any attempt, to appeal to a Bourgeois demographic, is inhibited by the fact that Starbucks is a large corporation who monopolizes the coffee industry and must cater to a broad demographic. This fact can not exist without affecting the perception of the store as a whole. Starbucks aligns more with the ramifications of being in the popular culture category in the scale of cultural capital because of the broad range of people that the store caters to. With Starbucks, symbols are recognizable and locations are convenient.

Perception and imagination is defined by the five senses in theory, but in reality it is so much more than that. How we perceive objects, places, people and situations as human beings is founded on our senses but guided by our previously held beliefs and personal experiences. After our group learned about Starbucks’s monopolization of the coffee industry, it will be hard for us, not to allow our perception of Starbucks to be tainted. Individually owned stores, such as Caffé Driade, aid the economic growth in developing countries by supplying jobs in poor communities. Large Corporations, however, hurt these communities by driving down the price of coffee with their mass production of beans.

I speak for our entire group in saying that this project has revolutionized our view, not only of the two coffee shops specified, but of coffee shops as a socio-spatial component of culture as a whole. We feel as though we have gained new insight into the complex relationships between business and society as well as economics and social justice as a result of measuring perception within these third places.

Interesting change in our own perception....

2007-10-01T14:48:00.001-07:00

Even though our group was researching the perception others have of our two chosen coffee shops (Starbucks and Caffe Driade), our perceptions changed-ironically. After speaking to the managers and staff of the two different coffee shops, we learned more about fair trade and the coffee industry. Though some of us had known about fair trade, we hadn't related it to the coffee industry before hearing about it first hand from an employee at Caffe Driade. The intent of fair trade, as stated in it's wikipedia article, is "to deliberately work with marginalised producers and workers in order to help them move from a position of vulnerability to security and economic self-sufficiency." Yes....it is from wikipedia....but it seemed like a good summary of the concept. After realizing this concept, how Starbucks gets their coffee has alter our own perception of Starbucks as compared to Caffe Driade. Let's just say we may be spending more of our time at Caffe Driade and other non-corporate coffee shops that believe in fair trade rather than Starbucks and the like.

Group Meeting Details

2007-10-01T14:09:00.000-07:00

Details

Tuesday September 11, 2007 9:30 am

Met to form our complex question and scope out the best way to attack the project

Friday September 21, 2007 2pm

Met at Starbucks to make a few preliminary decisions and scope out how/when we can ask them questions

Monday September 24, 2007 4pm

met at Starbucks to interview the Manager and customers
i. Manager’s name: Amy
ii. interviewed anonymous customers

Tuesday September 25, 2007 3pm

met at Café Driade to interview Manager and customers
i. [met at about the same time as we did for Starbucks to keep the time of day factor constant in our analysis]
ii. Manger’s name: Patrick
iii. interviewed anonymous customers

Wednesday September 26, 2007 8pm

met to get a feel for the Caffé during a nighttime event, totally different atmosphere, crowd, and purpose to the customers’ visits
i. Peter Laiosa and Bob Bottjer played the guitar

Monday October 1, 2007 4pm

met at yet another coffee shop- Caribou to change it up a bit
met to finalize our individual duties and to sum up the project as a whole
make final revisions to each individual part

Our group met under these specifications and then worked individually as we could afterwards. Throughout the group meetings, we always emailed each other our thoughts. We emailed the work we completed individually for the other group members to revise and check over.

More pictures...

2007-10-01T13:27:00.000-07:00

The group at Starbucks

Interviewing customers outside of Starbucks

More Starbucks interviewing

Freddie drinking Starbucks

Shannon drinking coffee at Caffe Driade

Marissa drinking coffee at Caffe Driade

Shannon interviewing at Caffe Driade

The group at Caffe Driade

Map of Socio-Spaces

2007-09-29T17:42:00.000-07:00

Map #1

Map #2

Links to drawn maps
https://createpdf.adobe.com/cgi-pickup.pl/scan001001.pdf?BP=NS6&LOC=en_US&CUS=f77ffdff689f90b945c44889aafeca7a&CDS=47031417-2D3F-28D5D8

https://createpdf.adobe.com/cgi-pickup.pl/scan002001.pdf?BP=NS6&LOC=en_US&CUS=c3e67a1019c268ea77adf077db9bfe14&CDS=47031397-2B3D-08F01A

adobe ID: memiano@gmail.com
password: geog228

Pictures so far....

2007-09-26T14:56:00.000-07:00

The sign for Starbucks on Franklin Street

The Sign for Caffe Driade

interview questions!

2007-09-26T14:46:00.000-07:00

Here were some of the interview questions we came up with to ask at Starbucks and Cafe Driade

Managers/ Owners:

1. What kinds of customers are you trying to attract?

How do you attract people and publicize your store?
What kinds of people visit this store? (demographics, social groupings, etc.)

2. How did you decide the decorations and appearance of the store?

3. What makes your store unique?

4. What factors contribute to your success as a coffee shop?

5. What do you provide for the customers? (entertainment, wi-fi, outdoor seating… etc.)

6. Who chooses the music and how does this affect your customers?

7. Can you tell about the history of this store and how you think that has shaped your

customers?

8. How does the atmosphere here change throughout the day and throughout the week?

morning vs. night
weekday vs. weekend

9. Does competition affect the way you run your store, if so how and what actions do you take to

bring in customers?

10. How do you encourage customers to be loyal to your store?

11. Do you think your loyal customers are of a certain demographic?

Customers:

What made you decide to get coffee here rather than another shop down the street?
How has your perception of coffee shops changed after visiting this location?
When and why do you visit the store? (time and purpose)
How has the location of this store affected your decision?
What’s the first thing you think of when we say Starbucks or Café Driade?

2007-09-26T14:26:00.000-07:00

Three Related Projects and Blogs

Historical Perceptions of Sutton's Drugstore

Infrastructure of Milk In NC

Imagination/Perception of Cosmic Cantina

blackboard page

Four Related Links to our project

Complex Question Change

2007-09-12T06:18:00.000-07:00

After discussing our project, we have decided to change the complex question. Because we are only comparing two stores, we felt the need to include the names in our question, and then relate it to the general theme of the ownership of the coffee shop.

Our new complex question is...
How does the perception of a coffee shop alter between the Chapel Hill Starbucks (a corporately-owned giant) and Café Driade (an independently owned store)?

More information to be added soon!

First post

2007-09-03T19:58:00.000-07:00

The socio-space chosen by our group was a coffee shop. Group members: Marissa, Shannon, and Freddie.

Our complex question is "How does the perception of a coffee shop alter between individually owned and corporately owned stores?"

E-mails:

Marissa Miano: marissa@email.unc.edu
Shannon Stinson: sstinson@email.unc.edu
Freddie Jolly: fjolly@email.unc.edu