Seattle-based coffee giant Starbucks is making changes to their policies, including repealing the open-door policy that has existed for six years and cutting down several drinks on the menu.
This is all part of new CEO Brian Niccol’s plan to go “Back to Starbucks,” according to the Starbucks website. This plan involves, among many things, giving mugs to for-here customers and cutting unnecessary items that weren’t making good money off the menu.
Seventh grader Konrad Stillner says that “one of [his] cousins really likes to go to Starbucks,” and that they were “really annoyed” that they were cutting some of the drinks off the menu, such as numerous Frappuccinos and the white hot chocolate. Those drinks are set to disappear from the menus this month, according to The Associated Press.
The open-door policy, which allows non-paying customers to come inside the cafe as a conference space and a public restroom, is coming to an end after a six-year reign in effect, according to the Seattle Times.
Stillner also says that “his mom went there to work a lot” and usually also got food there.
Eighth grader Elliot Goldberg has a different view. Goldberg says that he has been “going there since he was 9 or 10” and is thus familiar with the new policies as well.
Goldberg also says that, like Stillner, his dad has gone there to work, but “hasn’t been impacted because he is a paying customer.”
Goldberg is relieved by the repealing of the open-door policy because when he would go there after school, “there would be a lot of middle schoolers standing around and not buying anything.”
“It’s a coffee shop, not a playground,” Goldberg said.