Hanging Out At Starbucks

I'm not going to use this space to debate the pros and cons around teens drinking caffeine or how Starbucks has driven many independent coffee houses out of business. What I can say is that as a teen, I spent lots of time at iHop (International House of Pancakes) in Nashville drinking very bad coffee and hanging out with my friends (and that today, if I don't have coffee in the morning, I get very, very cranky). There aren't a lot of places teens can do this anymore — they're being thrown out or restricted at malls and are often feared and/or scorned by adults for being loud and obnoxious in public spaces. (Adults who seem to forget that they were teens once, too.)

Starbucks is now acknowledging that teens are part of their customer base and that they like to hang out there with friends, listen to music (or, gasp, even buy music), or do their homework. As a result they are evaluating their marketing strategy to figure out whether (and how) to tap into this market.

Part of me feels like the appeal of drinking coffee for teens is that it's one legal way to do something that feels more adult. It's also social. The reality is that when teens hang out in groups, they are often loud. So if Starbucks adjusts its marketing strategy to attract more teen customers, will it alienate their other customers? Maybe. But I also remember the iHop waitresses (who called everyone "honey or sweetie") politely just telling us to keep it down when we got unruly.

There are so few public spaces where teens and adults can peaceably coexist that if I were Starbucks I would think about how to create that kind of space. Treat the teens as young adults with the same expectations they have for their other adult customers. As for developing new products, I could see a healthier non-caffeinated line of drinks packaged as brain food (to help you focus/study), maybe some computing stations at larger stores where you can log in for a certain amount of time if you buys something and check your Facebook/MySpace, etc. Starbucks could also expand its music roster to include some up-and-coming folk/pop acts that appeal to teens (like Secondhand Serenade!), and having an open mic night on a Friday or Saturday where anyone (including teens) can sign up to perform.

I'm not arguing that teens should consume more caffeine, but If I were a parent, I'd much rather have my teen hanging out at Starbucks drinking a mocha than trying to sneak into a bars or getting drunk at a party.

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