I visited a coffeehouse recently where rather than give out water upon request, they have a 3 gallon bottle of ice water with a stack of cups next to it so customers desiring water can help themselves.
I was wondering if doing something like this at sbux would be a good idea? Surely it's been thought of by the powers that be.
Curious what your thoughts are on this.
When asked about it, their reply was that "when we're slammed with a line out the door, you invariably have some idiot come in wanting water, or we get the same homeless people that come for water every day, it's easier to let the unwashed masses fend for themselves".
(had to love his brutal honesty)
I asked my SM about that and was told that we're not allowed to because it violates some Ecosure or health code rule or something. When it's really busy we usually just ignore that and set out a pitcher of ice water with some tall cups because we have requests for ice water literally every 2 minutes. Tall cups only. And when it's REALLY busy, no ice. Our ice machine can't keep up. Venti ice water? Nope!
They USED to do it. I remember when I was a teenager and I would go to Barnes and Noble, the attached Starbucks would have a jug of water on their condiment cart.
Any of the old timers on here remember that?
There's nothing to prevent a homeless guy or savage customer from stealing the jug of water, or fingering and dirtying all the cups, knocking them to the floor.
There's also nothing preventing anarchists from putting liquid lsd into the creamer jugs.
Or anything else they want to.
There's me. I'd knock the customer out if they think they can open up the milk carafe and tamper with it.
Oh Sharpie. If only every store had one of you.
Truth be told, anyone could easily screw with the milk jugs at my store, and probably most stores. Most people are pretty self absorbed, so even though the place may be crawling with baristas and customers, the baristas are busy doing what we do, and the customers are busy looking at ipods, iphones, laptops, etc.
It's just a matter of time until we have to switch to single serve creamers, and the mess they're going to cause.....
From what I heard managers say the reason for having us make the iced waters is to give us another opportunity to "connect" w/ our customers.
From what I heard managers say the reason for having us make the iced waters is to give us another opportunity to "connect" w/ our customers. also, anytime you ring in a cup of water you earn labor for your store. more labor= more partners on the floor.
122345678: the labor part is correct. I punch in iced water once every 5 minutes whether or not it's legit.
I think I'm going to suggest leaving a water pitcher out during busy mornings, and cite anarchists/caraffes/single-serve creamers if they bring up health code rules.
I'm definitely a big proponent of telling people to ring up waters, not just for the added labor, but I get a kick out of the look of shock on people's faces when they think they're getting charged for water. Although I think it's interesting that you can only ring up Cup of Water, but it won't take the "Iced" modifier even though that's an extra labor step for iced waters.
Anarchists wouldn't waste their LSD on a bunch of straights. Let's be real.
I always ring the water in Symphony, though I wonder if the "default recipe" for water INCLUDES ice, so it won't take the iced modifier? Just throwing it out there.
Unrelated, but:
I'm being creepy and sitting in Dry Sharpie's store right now! I love the delicious tears of the customers who look at their (awesome) 'bathroom is broken' sign. I'm avoiding my own store but I'm trying to get some work done.
Also, Sharpie, there was some guy in your store who was like OVERLY INTERESTED in what store and district I was from. I know it wasn't you, but it was funny. Was he testing me or something?
**** hell, just when I was finally convinced DS was a girl. :'(
Seriously though...can you guys really be fired for posting here? I mean simple vents and rants, not admitting egregious violations of sbux policy.
That's why we are technically anonymous. ;)Don't know our real names? Don't know exactly which store we work at? Exactly.
i plan to stalk the shxt out of DS in a few weeks. oh the fun we'll have.
@Allison: He has a serious case of yellow fever.
You may have seen me today, I dropped by in the late afternoon and chatted up the baristas on the floor.
@Javachap: looking forward to meeting you in person.
I wandered out of your store around 5ish, because I needed a restroom. We might have been two ships passing by.
For what it's worth, I was the girl with the pink laptop sitting in the back behind the Three Region Blend display.
Yeah, the dude popped up out of NOWHERE and just started asking me questions. Also, he was lingering around because the partner on till didn't know how to ring my iced double tall chai.
The SBUX at the Barnes &Nobles I go to leaves a pitcher of iced water out on the counter with some small plastic cups for people to pour. I think it's a brilliant alternative:)
@Allison That's a very dirty chai!
I swear, a customer came up to me last month and ordered this drink with a straight face: "I want an extra filthy soy chai." I couldn't keep myself from laughing.
I suggested it once and my SM was like nothing at starbucks is self service. ugh.
One of my friends works in an sbux in a hotel. They offer complementary water pitchers throughout their lobby. He warned me never to get water from there, that people often dip their hands in the water to wash them off.
And there you go.
WHAT?!?!?!?!
Really?!?!?! Wash their hands in a WATER PITCHER?! I hate people.
If it's busy, I'm gonna do it as long as our store manager isn't around.
Nothing pisses customers off more than waiting behind you help 10 drink guy by having to put all his drinks in the tray with stoppers for him... and waiting for their drink between every other person that walks up to the hand-off plane requesting a water. I've gotten two customers walk behind the counter and cuss me out during rushes because they had to wait too long behind that kind of thing.
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