Page 37 - The Starbucks Experience

PRINCIPLE 1

Be Welcoming
While most individuals would not think of inviting guests into
their home, only to ignore them, many business leaders fail to
make their companies equally inviting. At Starbucks, “being
welcoming” is an essential way to get the customer’s visit off
to a positive start. It is also the foundation for producing a pre-
dictably warm and comfortable environment. It enables part-
ners to forge a bond with customers so that infrequent visitors
become regulars, many of whom end up customers for life.
Many important customer questions are answered in the
first moments of a business interaction. Do the staff members
care to get to know me? Do they remember me? Will they
take care of my needs? Do I matter? Am I invisible?
Starbucks management recognizes that these are key con-
cerns for every person with whom the company does busi-
22 ness. The leadership emphasizes the creation of a welcoming
experience precisely to let customers know that they are
important. According to Starbucks International president
Martin Coles, “People want to be recognized. They want to
be celebrated in some way. They want to be made to feel as
if they really do count for something. And they want a place
where they can belong in the community that stands for
something more than just an enterprise that makes money.
The thing in our company and the thing that works univer-
sally is this whole notion of Third Place. It’s about the in-
store experience—all of it.”
At its essence, Starbucks management defines be welcom-
ing as “offering everyone a sense of belonging.” The leaders
emphasize that partners can and should use their individual
talents and knowledge to create a place where people feel that
they are a priority and where their day can be brightened, at
least for a moment. This experience is what most customers