Talking with Tony yesterday about Starbucks. And now I see that Jennifer is having a pop at them too prompted in part by my namesake .
Jen and John are fed up with premature Christmas music. And I’m asking myself a broader question: I was wondering if Starbucks has actually served its purpose. It has done an interesting job of introducing a different style of coffee shop on a grand scale. But now we all get the “third place” concept… do we really need Starbucks anymore?
I don’t mind Starbucks, I think they are making an effort on social responsibility and yes there’s something reliable about their offering. But I’m not sure that as a brand it’s really that useful anymore.
And I guess I’m wondering whether we could all do with being rather less interested in brands being timeless. Wall St, of course, is addicted to cancerous profit growth… but for the rest of us, I’m not so sure.
And the truth about brands is, there are a an awful lot that we really wouldn’t miss.
I could be wrong, but I thought I’d float the idea.
