Status Signalling and Starbucks
The difference between a Starbucks crowd in Manila and say Washington DC is the absence of a crowd DC. In DC where I worked for a few months, people pass by a Starbucks, get their cup of joe and storm out of the store in no time as they go to work in the morning. In the Philippines it's different a lot of attractive (this part is probably relative) people hang out at the Starbucks downing a coffee drink that can set you back by an average of $4 for a 'tall' size cup. From my personal observation and anecdotes from friends, these people hang around Starbucks for a considerable time. Is there any rational reason for this?
A cup of drink that's equivalent to 2/3 of the daily minimum wage is an expensive treat for sure (in contrast that's just 2/3 of the hourly minimum wage in the US). My sister tells me that only well-to-do people hang out at Starbucks and thus, to be seen at Starbucks is to signal some degree of affluence. Would a customer's wealth explain hanging out at this establishment longer than one normally would take to finish a drink? I doubt it.
I think customers hang out because Starbucks coffee is just so expensive. Having paid a considerable amount in Philippine terms, they want more in return for their money. They hang around to consume more store services like air-conditioning, sitting in a nice chair, and the pleasure of spotting some attractive person coming in. The same thing happens when you go eat at a sit-down restaurant, the food is expensive so you consume more of the ambiance.
Washington DC office workers, don't hang out at Starbucks that long because they are wealthy enough not to consume in-store services. So I tell my sister the next time she goes to Starbucks, the well-to-do are not those sitting at the table, it's those who storm out of the store as soon as they are handed their fix.
A cup of drink that's equivalent to 2/3 of the daily minimum wage is an expensive treat for sure (in contrast that's just 2/3 of the hourly minimum wage in the US). My sister tells me that only well-to-do people hang out at Starbucks and thus, to be seen at Starbucks is to signal some degree of affluence. Would a customer's wealth explain hanging out at this establishment longer than one normally would take to finish a drink? I doubt it.
I think customers hang out because Starbucks coffee is just so expensive. Having paid a considerable amount in Philippine terms, they want more in return for their money. They hang around to consume more store services like air-conditioning, sitting in a nice chair, and the pleasure of spotting some attractive person coming in. The same thing happens when you go eat at a sit-down restaurant, the food is expensive so you consume more of the ambiance.
Washington DC office workers, don't hang out at Starbucks that long because they are wealthy enough not to consume in-store services. So I tell my sister the next time she goes to Starbucks, the well-to-do are not those sitting at the table, it's those who storm out of the store as soon as they are handed their fix.
posted by F @ 12:32 AM
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