The world’s largest coffee chain Starbucks is making significant changes to its business practices in a bid to enhance customer safety and operational efficiency. These policies will be adopted all across North America.
On Jan. 13, Starbucks announced that it was reversing its open-door policy, which had been in place since 2018, and now requires customers to make a purchase to utilize its cafe facilities, effective from Jan. 27, 2025.
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This move may be a regression in the company’s prospects and may further hurt its bottom line which has already been suffering.
Starbucks will introduce several important changes to improve the experience for both customers and employees. Customers will now need to make a purchase to use Starbucks’ spaces and restrooms, ending the previous open-door policy.
Additionally, new rules have been put in place to ensure a safe and welcoming environment by banning harassment, violence, threatening language, outside alcohol, smoking, and panhandling in stores. The main goal of these changes is to enhance safety and create a better experience for both customers and staff, addressing concerns related to the old policy.
Starbucks introduced the open-door policy in 2018 after an incident in Philadelphia, where two Black men were arrested for sitting in a Starbucks without making a purchase. The incident caused public backlash and led to store closures for racial sensitivity training. Starbucks later decided to change this policy due to several factors.
First, customer traffic and sales had been declining, with a 3% drop in revenue and a 7% decrease in global store sales in 2024, partly due to increased competition, especially in China. Second, employees raised concerns about safety and managing non-paying visitors, which affected staff morale and service quality. Finally, maintaining a clean and safe environment for customers became a priority, leading to stricter rules for store access and behavior.
Starbucks’ North America President, Sara Trilling, emphasized the need to reset expectations for how the spaces should be used and who can use them.
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The company is taking a mighty big risk with this move, these policy changes may bring in sales but it may not last as these new rules may very well alienate many customers who may feel excluded.
As the company adapts to these changes, it will need to balance safety with maintaining its reputation as an inclusive, welcoming brand. Ultimately, this policy shift could redefine Starbucks’ relationship with its customers and employees moving forward.