Starbucks Music

What’s going on with music discovery at Starbucks? Actually, quite a lot, but not in a good way. Apparently, by September of this year, Starbucks will drop their music sales and itunes giftcards at all store locations.

This topic is near and dear to my heart. It also has a lot to say about companies entering music discovery. I am in a Starbucks nearly every day of the week and am writing this blog from a Starbucks location.

The somewhat tragic part of this story is that Starbucks started out as a music discovery venue. You could hear new artists and purchase albums not readily available elsewhere. Now they carry safe acts like Coldplay, Paul McCartney, and Alanis Morisette. As I’ve written before, I’m not going to spend $12.99 in Starbucks for a Coldplay album I can purchase for $9.99 at Starbucks or Wal*Mart. But I would be willing to drop $12.99 on an album that I know is not available at other locations if I like what I am hearing in store.

I understand that Starbucks needs to get back to their core business, but here’s the problem with just going back to a concentration on drinks. CEO Schultz has continually stated that Starbucks is a 3rd home, the first two being the actual home and the second the place of employment. In this sense, the third home is a place to catch up on reading, an office in between meetings, or a place to meet with friends. Music is a vital part of the third home feel.

I know Starbucks is not going to get rid of music in their stores, but what I had come to expect from Starbucks was being able to work, chat, or relax while listening to new and exciting music. I can hear Coldplay on the radio. Paul McCartney is good, but I can hear him almost anywhere else. Starbucks had become a sort of new music discovery radio platform for me. In that light, it just makes sense to then have the album available in Starbucks locations for clients to make the connection between the song and the artist.

Instead of removing music, Starbucks should go back to how they started with music in their stores. They should return to being music discoverers instead of music players. This fits in with their core business of being a third home. With every other store in the world offering ‘high quality’ coffee now, Starbucks’ core business is not coffee. It is the third home experience. Coffee sparks the mind. Let new music do the same!

Stay tuned,
Erik
erikrostad.com