2. DUMB STARBUCKS
Parody of Starbucks
LA
Ran by Comedy Central for show
“Nathan For You”
Legal action impossible, not breaking
any laws.
Might lower stocks.
3. NBC’S SECRET SOCHI STARBUCKS
Secret Starbucks inside the NBC
office at the Sochi Winter Olympics.
For NBC employees for free. Paid by
network.
Not allowed since Starbucks is not a
sponsor of the Olympics.
Might lower stocks.
4. STARBUCK’S “SECRET” MENU
A customer made menu of custom
drinks.
Gaining attention in media.
Might raise stock due to more
customers going to try custom drinks.
Starbucks has gained a lot of media coverage over the past few weeks due to a parody of the coffee shop, called Dumb Starbucks, opening shop in LA. Dumb Starbucks was giving out free coffee to customers at their Grand Opening, with an identical menu and store to the original Starbucks. Starbucks could not take legal action since it was a parody, and therefore legal. After releasing that it was all a joke for Comedy Central show “Nathan For You”, it put Starbucks in a bad light for taking such drastic measures for a joke, which in turn might lower business which could lower stocks.
In addition to Dumb Starbucks, a secret Starbucks was found in NBC’s headquarters at the Sochi Winter Olympics, which was giving “free” coffee to NBC’s employees, which was already paid for by the network. Starbucks is not supposed to be there since it is not an Olympic sponsor and people can not be seen walking around with cups with Starbuck’s branding, therefore it might be putting Starbucks on the spotlight instead of McDonald’s or other official sponsors. This could put NBC and Starbucks into bad lighting since it shows that NBC and Starbucks do not respect Sochi’s rules.
On the positive side, a new menu of customer-made drinks has gaining rapid attention in the media as of late. Being called Starbuck’s “Secret” Menu, this menu, or rather movement, is inspiring Starbucks fans to try new customizations rather than the old premade drinks. This might get more people to shop at Starbucks to try new drinks which might lead to a rise in stocks.
