digg

Join DiggAbout

Donkeys and Elephants and Delegates,oh my!
Check out the most popular Elections 2008 content on Digg.

See the original image at businessweek.com

Starbucks' Retro Logo

businessweek.com — "How Starbucks is using a special brown logo to evoke the chain's beginnings and restore some goodwill for the brand..."

Bury
show profanity settings
expand all
  • Namco, on 04/15/2008, -2/+48It's just a cost cutting measure. Printer cups with a one color process saves probably 5 cents per cup.
    • theDose™, on 04/15/2008, -5/+3And the old one wasn't, have you heard of spot colours?
    • theDose™, on 04/15/2008, -3/+2Yes I know, the orig has two...
    • sampanc, on 04/15/2008, -5/+1Now all the big coffee chains in Canada (Tim Hortons, Second Cup, and Starbucks) will have the same coloured cups; the green and white provided us with a sense of variety.
      • raynar, on 04/15/2008, -1/+4ah, you're one of the tools who buy the coffee so everyone can see that you bought the coffee...idiot.
    • cbartlett, on 04/15/2008, -1/+15At the volumes they order, I would bet it saves more like $0.0005 per cup.
      • rodeosmurf, on 04/15/2008, -0/+6Yeah, its not like they're printing these things on an inkjet printer or something.
      • SSUK, on 04/15/2008, -0/+5A saving's a saving at the end of the day.
    • sickswaystop, on 04/15/2008, -0/+8this isn't about cost cutting...it's a minor detail in their marketing strategy. starbucks has came out and admitted they are making changes to wow customers again, McCafe has made a huge impact on thier company.
    • bdbr, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1The cup itself probably doesn't even cost 5¢ in bulk.
      • WomensUnderwear, on 04/15/2008, -0/+0the coffee itself probably costs less than half a cent
    • themastersb, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1It's probably to battle the increase in food prices by just using a cheaper cup.
    • sickrubik, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1That doesn't account for the logo change. If it was merely a cost cutting endevour, which is negligable at the amount they are printing, the "new" (green) logo/print could have easily been made into one color. No, this was indeed a marketing stategy
  • Bamshackle, on 04/15/2008, -0/+3She has two tails argh!
  • xdeliriumx, on 04/15/2008, -12/+2boobs. giggity
    • Berkana, on 04/15/2008, -1/+2No, you see, the "giggity" should be reserved for the fact that she has two tails/legs. Conventional mermaids lack a little something somewhere.
  • deevay, on 04/15/2008, -2/+4I swear I saw one of these months ago.
  • repick3, on 04/15/2008, -7/+1Nudes?
  • NitrousFlare, on 04/15/2008, -7/+1Oatmeal cookie ftw
  • shauncullen, on 04/15/2008, -11/+5That'll keep middle america away from your precious brand.

    1. Show em boobage
    2. Public outrage, stop going to Starbucks
    3. Brand less diluted
    4. ???
    5. Profit
  • NorthernPCTech, on 04/15/2008, -7/+28They could use a picture of Hitler as their logo and the Starbucks addicts would still be lining up for their daily fix.
    • eigenweasel, on 04/15/2008, -0/+3You can't *taste* racism.
    • Flamancot, on 04/15/2008, -0/+3But it's so good.... and by so good i mean so everywhere...
    • bizchris, on 04/15/2008, -2/+8This thread has been Godwin'd.
    • SSUK, on 04/15/2008, -0/+2And the queue will still last longer than the Reich did...
    • YodaJones, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1Hitler drank Sternficker brand coffee
      http://tinyurl.com/69ob77

    • hybridcreation, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1Of course they would...not even the thought of supporting Hitler could keep them from needing to feel "hip" with their grande latte, lowfat, carmel mochochino.....................................no foam, please.
  • richashby, on 04/15/2008, -0/+26Always found the Starbucks logo very creepy.
    Reminds me of Ophelia drowning in Hamlet. Maybe I need more medication!
  • voguequeen, on 04/15/2008, -4/+0True, the one-color process is cost effective, but the old-skool logo does bring to mind a time before we were obsessed with bigger-better-faster-more philosophies. I like it. I need coffee!!
    • ChinezePanda, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1How hard is this 1 color process...

      GREEN.
  • Berkana, on 04/15/2008, -0/+4Exactly what I was thinking: when all else fails, bring back the boobs. Though that two-tailed mermaid ain't that appealing to look at.
  • maybach, on 04/15/2008, -5/+8Who really gives a crap. Is there nothing else going on in the world?
    • Eddible, on 04/15/2008, -2/+2Have you seen some of the other crap that makes the front page? This is a drop in the ocean.
  • imacbook, on 04/15/2008, -8/+8Buried as Starbucks spam and for getting on the homepage just because it's kevinrose. It's just a logo for some pretty awful coffee, you guys are better eating some fruit.
  • kaffein, on 04/15/2008, -0/+11Sans *****.
  • SmurfyBrown, on 04/15/2008, -0/+2"The color is muddy and almost makes the cup look like it came from another company altogether" -I see this as only a good thing.
  • kaffein, on 04/15/2008, -3/+21I like this logo better though:
    http://www.wickedsunshine.com/WagePeace/Consumeris ...
  • juusux, on 04/15/2008, -4/+0"It will remain in ads and as the logo for Pike Place bags of coffee. The new blend, which will be available in every store, has been crafted for a smoother, cleaner finish than many of the rotating blends Starbucks has traditionally carried week to week. This was done to combat the chief criticism of the company's coffee by reviewers, including Consumer Reports, that it tastes "burned.""

    i bet you this burned taste is not from the blend, but from individual stores leaving coffee in the pot for longer, trying to save money. i'm not much of a coffee drinker myself, they might not have that problem, unless if people buy lattes and other things more so than the coffees which are tasting burned.
    • darkfish, on 04/15/2008, -0/+2No. Starbucks coffee tastes "burned" because they burn the coffee. They use cheap coffee and over-roast it so you can't taste it. Also, this means that Starbucks every where on earth will taste like the same burnt crap. Uniformity cuts costs.
    • stealthboy, on 04/15/2008, -0/+2I'm no Starbucks fan, but you're off. There is quite a difference in the taste of a burnt roast vs. a burnt pot of coffee. Also, Starbucks does not keep coffee on those gas station burners that continually heat the coffee; it is brewed into thermal carafes that keep it warm.

  • mal1964, on 04/15/2008, -4/+1They just like green money, no more green logo no more green SuperSonics
    • SSUK, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1... What?
      • mal1964, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1Starbucks sold the team to an owner knowing they were going to move them.
  • Ell3, on 04/15/2008, -4/+7"using a special brown logo to evoke the chain's beginnings and restore some goodwill"

    Changing the company's logo is Management Floundering 101. Appear to do something, even if it's nothing.
  • ronk, on 04/15/2008, -3/+5It is still overpriced coffee...
  • davidwasman, on 04/15/2008, -8/+10I still will never set foot in one. They ruined the TRUE coffee houses where I live.

    Gone are the artists sitting for hours, mulling over sheets of torn and tattered paper. Gone are the nightly open-mic nights where bewildered patrons would listen with intent to the meanderings of a deranged but familiar mind. Gone are the values that a decent and true coffee house once stood for. Forever gone is the freedom of expression, the true aroma of a dank dark room, and a meeting place for great minds.

    F*ck you, Starbucks. F*ck you.
    • Zcott, on 04/15/2008, -4/+17Dude, it's just a coffee shop.
      • davidwasman, on 04/15/2008, -4/+2No, it's a corporate monopoly like WalMart that puts small businesses out on the street.

        Also, it's obvious you never set foot in a real coffee house before or else you'd understand what an almost religious experience and intense feeling it invokes.
        • Zcott, on 04/15/2008, -1/+2It's still a coffee shop, though. They don't kill puppies, you know. They just sell coffee.
        • davidwasman, on 04/15/2008, -3/+2They effectively killed an art form by saturating suburbs and towns. How is art not important to our lives?

          By your analogy, it's ok for WalMart because it's 'just a grocery store', right? I mean, who cares that they put Grandpa Jones out of business and ruined his retirement...it's just a store, right?

          again, it is painfully obvious you have never enjoyed a true barista.
          • Zcott, on 04/15/2008, -1/+1It is painfully obvious that you're putting the whole reason for their existence aside in favour of open-mic nights and lunatics raving about stuff. You can still find that pretty much anywhere. But that's not what Starbucks is about; it's about going for a cup of coffee and chilling out. They are a business.

            If there's a market for open mic lunatics, why don't you go and open a coffee shop?
          • davidwasman, on 04/15/2008, -3/+1I did...and it went very well, until Starbucks opened down the road--but don't go 'AH HA!' just yet. That's not why I despise them. I had a disgust for their practices long before when I lived in another city and we had a amazing coffee house called Yab Yum. That was closed after Starbucks pressured the city into allowing them rights to that type of business within a certain vicinity.

            Imagine, if you will, decent hard working folks just wanting a place that feels like home. Like a Moulin Rouge of coffee houses, right?

            Now imagine all those great minds, decent people, and art being thrown to the sidewalks because money was more important than culture.

            THAT is why I take this so seriously. Of course in Ireland you may not have as many of these stores as we do (every 2 miles in most cities) so I don't imagine you'd understand fully the amount of damage they're doing to our communties.
          • Zcott, on 04/15/2008, -1/+2What you have failed to take into account is that I'm an artist myself. A jazz musician, for whom work is so sparse that I've had to occasionally play pop gigs. Instead of complaining about how bad Starbucks is, I've actually worked with the folks who work there and performed there a couple of times with a group. They don't hate you; you only want them to hate you.

            These artists you speak of will always find alternative venues. In the meantime, I go to Starbucks because the people are friendlier, the music is mostly better (apart from the Kenny G) and the drinks are better than anything else.
        • IcyStorm, on 04/15/2008, -2/+1I thought this was all a part of capitalism. Apparently not.
    • zongamin, on 04/15/2008, -1/+3How pretentious?
      • davidwasman, on 04/15/2008, -1/+1yeah..how dare I stand up for small business and artists. The nerve of me, huh?

        *facepalm*
    • scyon, on 04/15/2008, -1/+2I just want coffee that is decent and fast from people that aren't jerks. Starbucks usually delivers this. Now if they could only get my order right... ;)
    • davidwasman, on 04/15/2008, -2/+1Nice to see StarBucks corporate is here. How else would I go from being up 15 diggs to 1?
      • SSUK, on 04/15/2008, -1/+1If you weren't flailing your arms around and jumping on everyone who dares to voice their opinion on the matter, as you've voice your opinion, perhaps people wouldn't be burying you for being a utter child about this issue. Welcome to the real world, ***** like this happens.
        • davidwasman, on 04/15/2008, -2/+3Oh, my bad. I didn't realize I wasn't allowed to engage in conversation on Digg. Especially without YOUR approval.

          My apologies.

          Opinions USED to be appreciated here. I mean, last I checked it WAS a /social/ media site.
    • SmurfyBrown, on 04/15/2008, -1/+4Yeah, I think you're over-romanticizing it just a tad
    • hybridcreation, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1You can always sit outside on the patio and talk politics with the other douches that think hanging out at Starbucks makes them ultra-hip.
      • nick0lis, on 04/15/2008, -0/+0lol i hate those f*%&$#@ who sit out there on the porch and hold their coffee like its the holy grail and think they're hip
    • p2ii, on 04/15/2008, -0/+0"Gone are the artists sitting for hours, mulling over sheets of torn and tattered paper."

      There's a term for that.......it's called loitering!
  • OSURoss, on 04/15/2008, -4/+2I can't wait for all of the religious wackjobs to jump all over this, complaining that the image is "obscene" or isn't "kid friendly".
  • Lubinski, on 04/15/2008, -4/+3bury starbucks
  • darkfish, on 04/15/2008, -1/+4How about re-introducing good coffee. I'm not doubtful that their "new blend" will be significantly better than their old burnt blend. Wait and see.
  • tboutcher, on 04/15/2008, -1/+1all green would have been better
  • allieshap, on 04/15/2008, -3/+0Haven't tried the "new" coffee and don't plan on it though I do love me a venti vanilla latte- I know I am one of them now- I do like the green logo soooo much better, the brown doesn't make me feel nostalgic or like it's better coffee, just a marketing ploy
    • ChinezePanda, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1You are typing this from your Mac within Starbucks right now arent you..

      AND ITS LARGE!!! NOT VENTI.. LARGE!!! Venti is a new means for archival storage. DAMNIT!
  • tboutcher, on 04/15/2008, -3/+1This is the second time in three years Starbucks has trotted out the brown mermaid, inspired by a Norse woodcut. Back in 2006, she was resurrected to mark the chain's 35th anniversary. This time, she is a messenger for Chairman Howard Schultz, who is trying to restore some of the goodwill
    "Starbucks plans to use the logo on all its cups for about eight weeks"
  • linkerjpatrick, on 04/15/2008, -2/+1I'm not going to say the mermaid is obscene but she does look more sickly.
  • kooftspc, on 04/15/2008, -1/+2peets coffee bitches
  • picardo, on 04/15/2008, -3/+1I see boobies.
  • TheHayze, on 04/15/2008, -4/+2I'd maybe start using starbucks if their coffee wasn't horrible, and was fair-trade organic, and at a lower price. But as it stands.. Hmmm.. i'll pass on starbucks.
  • Rwned, on 04/15/2008, -6/+3Starbucks is lame and gay.
    • SSUK, on 04/15/2008, -0/+2"Gay"? What are you, 11 years old? Get off the internet.
    • hybridcreation, on 04/15/2008, -1/+1So simple...yet so true.
  • ChinezePanda, on 04/15/2008, -4/+7Any chain that has to restore its goodwill has failed as a buisiness.

    I run a coffee shop in NYC.. Directly across from a Starbucks.

    My store Literally... drove that Starbucks off my block.

    Tell me how that happens.
    • ChinezePanda, on 04/15/2008, -1/+2Did I mention we just celebrated our 100 year anniversary?
    • omaryak, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1Congratulations on being able to compete successfully. Many people complain that Starbucks drives out local shops, but they wouldn't close if they made better coffee. And it's not too hard to do it, though after the retraining I have to say Starbucks is catching up.
  • snoop101, on 04/15/2008, -3/+1If a smaller coffee shop makes a good coffee i'll buy from them, but theres a good reason why Starbucks is so huge. (not there logo). Doesent matter what city or town you buy from the coffee is always the same. I live in canada and went to vegas and the coffee tasted the same.
  • djAnakin, on 04/15/2008, -1/+3I have a good way to "restore some goodwill for the brand". Quit being douchebags! It's just coffee!
    • hybridcreation, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1No, today it's also a conduit to cool. We're the one that don't know.
  • mercano, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1Well, I think I've hit a very good spot in geekdom when I expect this article to be about new nose art on Kara Thrace's Viper or something.
  • powerfullogic, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1I liked the new one better. Looks like it's Peet's from here on out.
  • dxgg, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1Ah, the nostalgia. I'm from Seattle, and the original store at Pike Place Market was the best. When Howard Schultz bought them out and turned it corporate, I was skeptical, but they did a fair job for awhile. Now, the coffee tastes nothing like it used to, and the "barista experience" that Schultz said was the key to their success has been watered down to nothing but watching somebody press a couple of buttons.
  • sega01, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1The current one is a lot nicer. That new/oldish looks like some deformed and mostly obese half-naked creature, caused by the contents of the cup.
  • xmuskrat, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1It's not a new logo at all, it's the original logo minus the bare breasts. http://www.deadprogrammer.com/starbucks-logo-merma ...
  • WomensUnderwear, on 04/15/2008, -1/+1***** STARBUCKS
  • xMunzi, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1Holy crap, talk about amazon.com down below! Somebody call a hedge cutter!
  • Sketchee, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1I thought this story would be about Battlestar Galactica. I was so excited until I found out it was just coffee
  • loftbunny, on 04/15/2008, -0/+0I was supposed to be looking at the cup? Holy junk, I'll get right on that.
  • forgiste, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1I had a dream that I smoked cigarettes and ate bacon and traveled back in time to the early '90's last night. I miss the old days... I know that has nothing to do with this, but it was a real dream.
  • tyrione, on 04/15/2008, -0/+0Most of you morons weren't even born when this company with that classic logo were making inroads in Seattle. It's great to see the old Goddess back.
  • utahcanuck, on 04/15/2008, -0/+0Starbucks got caught in a period where companies had to grow at unsustainable rates. It was inevitable that when they grew like they did, that they would have to hire staff that don't know the first thing about coffee, which inevitably led to the "pressing buttons" experience that everyone hates. Blame the Wall St. talking heads. I for one have nothing against Starbucks other than the fact that they now produce an inferior product. But it's my choice not to go there. Quit the hating just for hating's sake.
  • sgregory416, on 04/15/2008, -0/+1hah the description says it all, although it is a cool logo very chic hippie.
  • dfraser, on 04/16/2008, -0/+0It seems strange that Starbucks (at least in Canada) are having a major "our coffee is great because our baristas are awesome" marketing blitz. They replaced all of the beautiful semi-auto La Marzocco Linea espresso machines in their stores with super-automatics.
    They're trying to show how making their beverages are an art form... but all the barista gets to do is press the "espresso" button and perform maintenance tasks when the machine tells them to.

  • monica1357, on 04/16/2008, -0/+1"Brown is certainly a color that communicates coffee."

    That is a pretty bad start for an article.
  •  

    Login or register to add a comment

    Create a new account or login to join in the conversation on Digg. You'll also be able to Digg stories to help promote things you like.


© Digg Inc. 2008 — Content posted by Digg users is dedicated to the public domain.
DIGG, DIGG IT, DUGG, DIGG THIS, Digg graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and other service names are the trademarks of Digg Inc.