Why Starbucks closed after 10 years Why is the coffee shop no longer popular?

Ten years ago, the first Starbucks coffee shop in Shaoxing opened on Jiefang Road in Yuecheng District. On the evening of February 28 this year, after the last day of business, the Starbucks store announced that it was closed. What made this old coffee shop choose to close down? Will there be any new Starbucks around here? A reporter from this newspaper's "News take a deep breath" column conducted an investigation.

The Last Supper of Starbucks Jiaye Store

A group of regular customers attended the "thank-you meeting"

Not long ago, a Wechat went viral in "moments": the Starbucks Shaoxing Jiaye store on Jiefang Road will be closed permanently after February 28th.

On the afternoon of February 28th, when the reporter came to the store, it was still open, but a staff member told the reporter: "by 11:00 tonight, the shop will be completely closed." He also said that after the store was closed, the staff of the store were assigned to other stores in Shaoxing to continue to work. "it is false to say that there is no nostalgia. I like the atmosphere. I like my guests and friends. " The staff member smiled and could not hide a trace of loneliness in his eyes.

"what a pity. Why did you turn it off?" As Starbucks' first store in Shaoxing, the closure of the store made many regular customers feel sorry. "Post-80s" Mr. Zhao told reporters that he is a loyal fan of Starbucks. "I have a good time here when I fall in love and meet my friends, and now I still often bring my family here to sit down."

Later in the day, when the reporter came to the store again, the staff told the reporter that "the regular customer appreciation meeting is being held on the ground floor." The reporter saw that in addition to more than 10 "regular customers" at the scene, several successive managers of this store also came to the "hot spot". In the meantime, guests continue to join the "spectators". "as soon as I heard the news, I asked my friends to come and have a look. I was very reluctant to give up." A lady said.

The thank-you meeting set up three games, and everyone had a good time, but they were soon pulled back to reality by a hint from the host-sharing the story with the store, and the heart became very soft.

A store manager talked about the first interview: the interviewer was so enthusiastic that his interview was extended again and again. A store manager said that during her years of working here, she had accomplished several important things in her life: falling in love, getting married and having children. "I've been here since the opening day in 2005, and it's been 10 years now." A customer surnamed Zhang was the most impressive at the scene. He said that when he and his friends came to the store for coffee on a snowy day in 2008, he happened to meet several employees who could not come, and he drove to pick them up.

After the thank-you meeting, someone photographed many scenes in the store with a mobile phone. "this position is my special seat, and it hasn't changed for more than five years." In a corner of the ground floor, a young lady asked a reporter to take a picture with "location". "Don't be sad, there may be new stores opening here soon." Although the words of a store manager were ambiguous, it still made everyone feel as if they had taken a reassurance.

News survey

Why is the first store in Shaoxing closed?

Starbucks headquarters replied: the 10-year lease expires.

The reporter noticed that Starbucks food is not cheap, the price of each cup of coffee is more than 20 yuan. But it has an extraordinary position in the coffee industry. "it is mainly due to the cultivation of a group of loyal customers," said an industry insider. The reporter learned that for a long time, Starbucks has been committed to creating a unique "Starbucks experience" for customers, making Starbucks a warm and comfortable "third living space" in addition to work and living. Starbucks' price positioning is "luxury goods that most people can afford" and consumers are "white-collar workers". These customers often agree with a service, will not change for a long time, will use this service steadily for a long time, this is particularly evident in the white-collar class, they always have a psychological tendency to pursue stability.

In 2005, Starbucks opened its first store, Jiaye, on Jiefang Road, Shaoxing, attracting and cultivating a large number of Starbucks fans. In recent years, Starbucks has opened two stores in Shimao Square and Yintai City. Then why did Jiaye shop choose to close after 10 years of operation?

Yesterday, the reporter then contacted the former developer and lessor of this store-a company under Xi Linmen Group.

Starbucks has signed a 10-year lease with its company, and now that the rent is due, Starbucks has chosen to give up the position, according to a head of the company's investment department. Another reason is that the company has sold some of its stores to retail investors, including the house where the Starbucks store is located, while the rent offered by the new owner is higher. Now, in order to facilitate management, the company is renting the store back.

A staff member surnamed Wang in the public relations department of Starbucks headquarters in Shanghai also confirmed the situation. She told reporters that the company is currently negotiating with the landlord to consider re-renting and opening stores in this area, but the location and opening time have not yet been determined.

At present, some netizens are saying that a new Starbucks store will be opened in Xianheng Xintiandi Square on Jiefang Road in three months' time, but relevant people from Xianheng Xintiandi told reporters that they have not heard any news about this.

News observation

Once booming, now they are transforming one after another.

Why is the coffee shop no longer beautiful?

The reporter learned that since 2000, a large number of coffee shops on both sides of the strait, Shangdao, Jazz Island, Dior, Lafangshe and other cafes have opened in Shaoxing one after another. They once represented fashion and romance and became the first choice for young people to date.

"when I first arrived in Shaoxing about 10 years ago, the coffee shop gave me the impression that it was very high-end. At that time, my friends bought dinner and went to the coffee shop," said Ms. Wang, who now lives in Xiushuiyuan district. In recent years, many of the coffee shops she visited have disappeared. "it's really hard to find a cafe near home." Mr. Wang, who lives in the east of the city, lamented that he had to go to Lu Xun's hometown recently to have a cafe when he met with friends.

Industry insiders believe that the expiration of leases and rising rents have become a hurdle that some coffee shops cannot overcome.

Not long ago, Ms. an bought a small coffee shop with an area of about 150 square meters from others. "now there is not much profit in opening a coffee shop, mainly because the cost is too high." She calculated an account for the reporter: the rent for her shop was about 100000 yuan a year, and the renovation cost about 150000 yuan. In addition, she had to pay a transfer fee of 100000 yuan to the former coffee shop operator. "just to recover these costs, at the price of 15 yuan for a cup of coffee, you have to sell at least 60 cups a day to recover the cost, but this figure, for most coffee shops, is difficult to guarantee." She said.

During the interview, the reporter found that most of the so-called coffee shops sell milk tea, western food and bars under the banner of coffee. Some operators say that in order to survive, coffee can only play a supporting role. "if you only sell coffee, it's hard to make a living. If you want to get rich, you can't just sell coffee." An operator told reporters.

In addition to rising costs, the loss of customer base has also become a problem for established coffee shops. According to the analysis of the head of a coffee shop, the first is the intensification of competition, and now there are at least dozens of coffee shops in Shaoxing city. The rise of a number of concept leisure and entertainment squares has taken away many customers. "in recent years, the business circle in the urban area has also been shifting. Compared with the old urban area, people are more willing to die in shopping and leisure squares such as Mao Square and Yintai City, and their customer base has been diverted." In addition, the person in charge believes that today's coffee shop is no longer fashionable, but has become a member of civilian dining.

The viewpoint of "deep breath"

American catering

Why does the halo fade gradually?

Starbucks Shaoxing's first store closed, inevitably a burst of nostalgia brewing, fermentation.

Nostalgia means goodbye, and for Starbucks fans, they still have that vanilla latte. The excitement and novelty of walking into Starbucks 10 years ago may be hard to find.

Although we cannot jump to conclusions about the operation of Starbucks in Shaoxing just because we close a store, it is an indisputable fact that the halo of Starbucks, a brand that once had too much attached meaning, has gradually faded. Similarly, there are KFC and McDonald's, and even Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

These brands are the labels of American pop culture, and they have landed in Shaoxing across the ocean. They have brought a new consumer experience and attracted a high degree of attention: on the lively road of liberation, KFC opened a fire and a fire; 10 years ago, when Xilinmen launched an ambitious spring department store, it took great pains to attract Starbucks, and all the fashion pioneers gathered here in Shaoxing.

The rise of American pop culture is not only strongly promoted by Hollywood blockbusters and other carriers, but also supported by the hegemony of the United States in the global economy, but also protected by advanced business ideas.

But nowadays, with the gradual rise of the concept of healthy living, American popular culture based on consumerism has been challenged as never before. Take diet as an example, foreign fast food has more calories than the human body needs, which not only brings pleasure to children, but also quietly harms their bodies, and more and more people begin to control the frequency of children's consumption.

In consumerism culture, industrial production ensures quality, strict regulation ensures food safety, and it was once the selling point of American food and beverage, but now, even well-known brands have frequently exposed scandals of lax supervision of suppliers. This has made nervous local consumers particularly cold.

Last but not least, the core competitiveness of American pop culture, the supremacy of consumer experience, did not fall with the brand. Local consumers did not exchange high prices for the same consumer experience as American consumers. Under the halo of the brand, you can only be intoxicated for a while or a small number of people.

Sooner or later, Shaoxing consumers will bid farewell to these brands, but this day comes a little faster.