I don’t really hate Starbucks.

Just because I work in specialty coffee means that I am very against this company. Sometimes, it’s more than just the coffee.

I grew up getting excited when me and my family would grab a Frappuccino. Home was about an hour drive from the city to the province. Our stopover had one shop, and we’d sometimes stay to hang out, talk story and just be cozy.

I loved the experience of being greeted by a barista, and feeling the warmth that Starbucks has in their cafe. On some days,  I’ve wondered “Hmmm…. What if I was a barista?”. However, this thought is immediately followed by the idea that I cannot sustain a lifestyle I want by being so. Being a barista is simply a profession I cannot pursue. But well… until I learned about specialty coffee.

But before then, I loved being in Starbucks because of the hospitality!

Working and learning the existence of specialty coffee had me want to ignore Starbucks. Starbucks isn’t one that takes lead into good growth for coffee, when it comes to valuing the actual product. It’s so big, that it obviously doesn’t source coffee for quality, but quantity. Machines are automated. It’s so fast paced that it values speed, more than output. Sizes. Changing terms of using ounces that could’ve been more universal and helpful for other cafes. Oh and most importantly, drinks? It’s more milk and artificial flavor based rather than the coffee. Coffee becomes more like a caffeine supplier and crave satisfier to majority of drinks in the menu.

But sometimes, even with all of these in mind, I come to think. Is it really a bad thing? How do these qualities of Starbucks directly affect the industry of specialty coffee?

Well… come to think of it, that’s what lessens the stress to specialty coffee shops or owners. There’s some filter to the consumers we serve. This is also one reason why we can distinguish commodity from specialty. We are of a different industry.

Starbucks is a different entity. If they cannot fit into the idea of specialty coffee’s standards, they create a standard of their own. I don’t necessarily mean that this is a good thing, nor it is a bad thing. But ya see, the point is, I just can’t be too mean with the frappucinno drinkers because I’d be a hypocrite to say so. I love my Java chip frap! To simply put it this way, I don’t really hate Starbucks because they’re not really coffee.

This blog will be in conflict because my brain is arguing. A topic about Starbucks brings that in me.