starbucks

The Day “The Patrick” Disappeared: A story of lost identity

October 20, 2010

Tweet This is a story about a quirky little cafe that disappeared. While I lived in town, and for a few years after we moved, this cafe was a touchstone, a demonstration, of one of the experiences that made our small town so interesting. When the cafe changed just one little thing, it lost what […]

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That Special Starbucks: Does the place help the people be authentic?

March 4, 2010

Tweet First it was the Siren. Then it was the Christmas cards. For a while, it’s been the original artwork by their very own baristas displayed on the walls.. And now, my favorite Starbucks is getting bouquets of flowers. On a recent visit, there were two big vases of flowers on the counter by the […]

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What’s going on at my favorite Starbucks?

January 13, 2010

Tweet There’s something going on at my favorite Starbucks. I’m not quite sure what it is. But there is new evidence today that this Starbucks is somehow special/better than the other 3 in my town. Before I tell you about that, I should probably explain that there are 4 Starbucks within a 2 mile radius […]

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Can Starbucks Touch Your Soul?

October 8, 2009

Tweet When an organization is being authentic, you can feel it. Even when its character is being expressed in a very small way, or through a very small action, an organization’s expression of its authentic self can touch your soul. I was reminded of the power of small, authentic acts to touch your soul while […]

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Burned by Inauthenticity

September 14, 2009

Tweet I had almost forgotten the details of our family’s bad experience with a national espresso chain after my daughter was burned by a grande hot tea on her way to the Big Apple Circus. Then I saw this article about a toddler being burned by a hot hash brown at Dunkin Donuts, and my […]

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Can Organizations Regain Authenticity by Bringing Back Their Original Visionaries?: Where to, Starbucks?

October 30, 2008

Tweet Too many organizations feel inauthentic. Some organizations never had authenticity, and they feel empty. Other organizations had authenticity once but have since lost it. These organizations feel hollow. In an effort to address its own hollowness, Starbucks has over the last year brought back not one but two of its original visionaries, Howard Schultz […]

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