Tim Hortons
In Canada, you will not find many Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks. Tim Hortons is all the rage north of the border. Canadians actually feel so strongly about Tim Hortons that some actually aspire to hold their weddings there. Kind of odd, yes, but obviously there is some connection between Canadians and this chain. I know personally, having been to Tim Hortons in Canada as well as here in the Unites States, I am definitely not a fan of their coffee. I had some on my way home from my honeymoon in Prince Edward Island and I was not impressed. They did not have flavored brewed coffee, they just had glavor shots that they put in the coffee. The coffee was not very effective at keeping me alert. I was not really impressed with the experience myself, but still they have a large cult-like following. I guess I am alone in feeling this way, does anyone care to enlighten me on the strong hold Tim Hortons has on its customers?
Starbucks Innovation
With the competition heating up for Starbucks in the coffee and specialty coffee business, there needs to be something new that sets them back on top. McDonalds and Dunkin Donuts have successfully cut into their market share with their cheaper coffees, lattes and cappuccinos. Starbucks had been offering fresh sandwiches to accompany it’s already exquisite line of pastries. This is not really enough though, as Panera also has the majority of the market share for deli and pastry. What is left for Starbucks? Well they are experimenting with a new marketing idea that I personally don’t know how I feel about. There has been a Starbucks lounge opened up in Seattle, a lounge/bar that serves alcoholic beverages. I do think this could be a very strong business venture for Starbucks, making some alcoholic specialty coffees, but this is a dangerous step. The costs can rise significantly with this new avenue. I guess we will have to see if it pans out.
What’s so great about Starbucks?
I’m a Starbucks fan. I am. Don’t get me wrong, but I live in a relatively small Mississippi town. And yes, we do have a Starbucks, which I love to visit, but I also love the independent coffee store in town. Unfortunately, business there doesn’t seem to be booming, and I fear that it will go out of business. If so, it will be the 2nd independent coffee shop that has gone out of business since the arrival of Starbucks.
I don’t really get it. As far as the environment goes, the independent shop is comfy and homey with plush couches, free Wi-Fi, and coffee tables that give the impression that customers are just relaxing in their own homes. On the other hand, our Starbucks is relatively small, and though they have a small seating area, it has a more “restaurant” feel.
And the coffee? I consider myself a coffee connoisseur, and the coffee at the independent shop is equally as good. Starbucks does stay open longer, and therefore, it’s more convenient for coffee addicts like myself, who don’t require coffee only in the early morning hours. However, what is it that makes Starbucks the “go to” coffee place, crushing the hopes and dreams of independent shop owners in small towns like mine?
Coffeehouse Locations
Whenever I’m at a place of business that provides a customer service, I try to think outside myself about what opportunities there are for business to assist that business. This brainstorming usually happens when I’m waiting at a place of business for an extended period of time. The car dealer waiting for service, the registry of motor vehicles and even the doctors office, all these places make me think specifically about coffee. This is usually because I don’t like waiting as long as these places often make customers wait, and coffee calms me down while waiting for hours does not. So I was thinking about how profitable it would be to open up a coffee shop inside or beside one of these business locations. The car dealer and the registry would probably benefit the most, I just can’t picture a practical way to incorpporate a coffee shop in a doctors office. This particular idea struck me when I was sitting in the car dealership waiting for a very long time, and the coffee offeed there is worse than what we have at my work, a lucrative business idea in the shadows!
How Hot is Too Hot
Most coffee drinkers love nothing more than a hot cup of coffee with their personal preference of cream and or sugar. When we get that cup, most of us have to wait until it cools down a bit, this is because coffee is an extremely hot beverage. Typically the heat doesn’t bother us to hold the cup because of advancements in the production and manufacturing of the coffee cup. There is one coffee place near where I work that does not have an advanced cup that properly insulates the heat inside the cup. As a result, I have a very hard time taking this cup with me into my car and managing not to spill it as I make the short drive from this coffee shop back to where I work. I think that a sleeve would probably help me keep from scalding my hands, but the coffee cup had been modified to prevent this inconvenience and discomfort. I guess the only way to remedy this situation without raising cost for this coffee shop would be to make the coffee less hot, but that would compromise the beverage entirely, it would just get cold sooner.
Coffee Prices
Coffee currently stands as the second most widely consumed beverage, right behind water and right above tea. As a society, coffee is almost as important to our day as breakfast (exaggerating) as seemingly few people are able to start their day without it. Some even go through 2, 3 or even more cups a day. The coffee business has been a booming one, with fast paced service being a key marketing tool. As we seem to drink more coffee now than ever, prices seem to be rising, so much so that Starbucks, always criticized for being overpriced, seems right around the average in cost for a cup. With large franchises such as Dunkin Donuts and Tim Hortons also providing fast paced service, the market seems to be saturated. However, the market for coffee never seemed to be more open to opportunity. With few people taking the time to brew their own at home, we seem to be more than willing to pay up for coffee on the run. Even at roughly two dollars for your average, medium sized cup, we seem more than willing to make this purchase 2, 3 or even more times a day. Personally, I love brewing my own and bringing it to work, saves an easy 40 bucks a month! Way to beat the recession!
Coffeehouse Wifi
One of the best features of the 21st century coffee house is the free wireless internet offered to customers. This allows for people to enjoy their coffee and or pastry and get some work or recreational web browsing done. This perk, much like any freebie, is abused by few and thus we all suffer. There are those that go into a coffee shop, purchase a cup of coffee and sit there for hours, sometimes even an entire day, just using the free wifi offered to customers. This not only is abuse of the service but it more often than not takes away business from the coffee house by making a business seem busier than it actually is. When walking by a coffee house and seeing hoards of people, one is usually not encouraged to go in, and if they do, they are disappointed to find nowhere to sit and enjoy their purchase.
It is a shame but it seems free is all to often abused by our society. Some coffee houses remedy this by limiting wifi usage to an hour, which is an excellent way to fix the problem, but sadly this has led to less business for some shops, a real shame.
The Freshest Cup
There is nothing worse than pouring a cup of coffee at work and finding out you are the one taking the last cup. First of all, you now know it’s your job to refill the pot. What’s worse is that you don’t know how long that coffee has been sitting in that pot, burning on that hot plate. This is the exact situation that drove me to start brewing at home. When I started I would purchase ground coffee at the supermarket, guess as best I could how to brew a pot that was “just right” and I was on my way with my own coffee. This was fine for a while, but I began to despise this coffee as well, just wasn’t fresh eough!
I did some brainstorming about different ways to get the most out of my coffee. First thing that really makes sure your coffee is as fresh as possible is to grind your own beans just before brewing. THis ensures the flavor is as strong as possible, breaking out of the bean just minutes before you brew it. Secondly it helps if you use filtered or spring water rather than tap water. The minerals in tap water often lessen the coffee flavor and can just ruin the whole experience. Now the best way to ensure your coffee is the freshest possible is to have beans that have been roasted within the past 60 days. I have only found a few bags that actually advertise being roasted within 90 days, and these were Peet’s coffee bags, but if anyone finds a bag or brand advertising 60 days or less let me know.
By using these steps and brewing coffee at home, you too can eliminate that burnt coffee from work and enjoy that cup or 2 (or three) that you have each morning.
Ways to enhance coffee
Coffee is becoming a worldwide house staple. I’m sure at least one person you know drinks coffee or has it in their kitchens. There are plenty coffee drinkers that love their coffee black, some like it with either cream/milk and sugar, and there are some (like myself) that like it with cream and sugar. I don’t drink coffee much these days instead I drink tea, but for those who do; here’s a couple of ways to enhance your coffee to suit your taste buds if they’re looking for a change.
- Add chocolate syrup if you want that chocolaty flavor.
- Add vanilla ice cream or any kind of ice cream.
- Add Chai to add a little sweet and spice to your coffee.
- Add soybeans in your coffee blend to make it healthier.
- Add half and Half if you don’t want a dry cream or milk.
- Add mint for a refreshing and invigorating taste.
- Add coconut milk for an creamy and relaxing flavor.
Make angry comments on cyberspace
Have you ever done anything like this before? If you have too much anger toward you job, or your supervisor. You need to venting your anger anonymously, the best place you come up will be the cyberspace. Don’t you? There were many online friends who can share your anger for the moment, and who can giving your advise for that particular situation. Without revealing your real name, you can say whatever you want.
Before you make such decision, have you ever thought about whatever you said in the cyberspace, this might come back and haunt you? This can be seen vividly in the news recently about the privacy of two employees from a Houston restaurant chain.
Two employees weren’t so happy with their manager. So they make angry comments on the internet, to venting what their angry opinion at the moment. The manager found out about this comments, he threatened them if they don’t revealed their password to that website, they will be fired. This case was brought to federal court for reviewing. The manager invaded their privacy, because they done so in their own private time. They couldn’t go back there, because they make cross the manager. So, it is a losing situation for both sides.
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