Breaking down Starbucks' hire of Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol

[@dcoughla681]

Hi guys. Great video. As a non-American, I can’t comment on the American market but here’s my take on the UK & European market. The good news is that Starbucks is seen as a good quality, middle class, American brand. It’s a solid, dependable & reliable coffee fix. The bad news is that it faces an avalanche of competition high, low & in the middle, particularly in cities where it’s seen as boring & overpriced. In London, for instance, you can’t move for coffee shops & remember the UK is a tea drinking nation. There are cafes, supermarkets who give a free coffee with any purchase or with a meal deal, mobile trucks in parks & plenty of international coffee shops making patterns on their coffee, particularly in hipster areas. I think the following: Focus on quality not quantity in everything. Locations of stores - middle class areas only. Local knowledge is needed here because the demographics change. Understand your customer like the back of your hand - who buys, when they buy, what they like/don’t like. Bargain down hard on suppliers and landlords (but only the right locations). Don’t bring in robots. Drinking coffee is a personal, sensual experience. Drive-thrus would be a disaster. People don’t drive miles to get a coffee in some soulless park. The customers in those places are cost conscious. It might be better to do European style hole in the wall tiny coffee shops in busy city centers ideally situated next to bus stops, transport links & shops. It would cut down on property costs. As for villages & small towns, forget it. There isn’t the footfall. Chipotle’s stores are in some very bizarre locations in the UK. I do hope Mr Nicol doesn’t make the same mistake with Starbucks and political ideology marketing is an absolute no no but you do have to be aware of where your coffee comes from ie fair trade coffee & market it as top quality to soften the blow on high price points.