I'm sure we could all do more to reduce water uasge, whether we be an individual or a corporation, but news that troubled coffee chain Starbucks leaves a tap running all day in all its stores must make anyone trying to conserve water gasp in bewilderment. Starbucks leaves a tap running all day in each of its 23 Australian stores. It's called a "dipper well" and is in the ... Read full entry

In addition to 700 job losses, the pending closure of 61 Australian Starbucks cafes will also bring about a reduction of wi-fi hotspots in some Australian cities. Canberra may be left with no Starbucks wi-fi hotspots at all, should the company decide to close all three cafes providing wireless internet access in the Australian capital. Starbucks currently has 37 stores equipped with Telstra's wireless hotspot service, with 11 ... Read full entry

While it's of little use to the 700 Australian Starbucks employees who are looking for new jobs today, you'd think any coffee franchise would undertake some reasonably comprehensive market research before opening 84 cafes, some in fairly close proximity to each other, and in very quick succession, particularly in a country that enjoys an established coffee culture. Associate Professor Nick Wailes, a strategic management expert at the University of ... Read full entry

Coffee wars: Starbucks v McDonald's. While some consider Starbucks coffee "fast food coffee", or worse still, the "McDonald's of coffee", it seems somewhat ironic that McDonald's, as in the hamburger "restaurant", is now shaping up as the next competitive threat to Starbucks. Adding to Starbucks' woes, and further emphasising its similarity with McDonald's, the burger chain is about to launch a direct attack of its own. This year McDonald's plans to ... Read full entry

Coffee's not-so-evil empire. If Starbucks coffee shops located across the street from each other, can compete with each other, then anyone, supplying a quality product can as well. After all, if Starbucks can make a profit by putting its stores right across the street from each other, as it so often does, why couldn't a unique, well-run mum and dad do even better next-door? And given America's continuing thirst for exorbitantly ... Read full entry