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The Bean Bank

Shambhavi Thakur
Feb 5, 20233 min read

Enveloped in the aroma of fresh coffee beans, and perfectly air-conditioned rooms with free Wi-Fi, Starbucks is no doubt the haven for all coffee aficionados out there. What is more perfect than completing your assignment in the comfort the coffee giant provides! Once upon a time, the company began its journey with high quality coffee beans and eventually expanded to include the concept of a café which would also serve espressos and cappuccinos. It has witnessed an aggressive growth throughout its journey with its revenue for twelve months ending June 30, 2022 at $32B approximately.


Starbucks sales account for 57% of the total cafe market. The first thing on the list of myriad things contributing to the massive success of Starbucks is its powerful logo of a mermaid in green which invokes a sense of culture and trust. The green background of fresh coffee beans lures people to get a sip. With the logo laying the foundation of the identity of the company, the aesthetically pleasing stores with a comfortable working environment, the company focuses to make these stores an experience. The best lit area with an exciting arrangement of low-cost add-ons proves comely for the customers. Starbucks operates under the idea that ‘it is not a coffee business serving people but a people business serving coffee’ which highlights an interplay of business and love. One such example is Starbucks calling its workers ‘partners’ who, along with fostering a sense of commitment, get a small percentage share of the company. The value of the stores lies in making a connection with its customers which is practised by writing individual names on the artistic cups whose designs are being recreated with changing seasons and festivities.


Ever wondered about a bank which lends coffee? Starbucks was way before any other company to make its social media presence. The Starbucks application which is used by 41% of the customers to make payment works on the Starbucks reward system which is guided by incentives. The customer is supposed to deposit some amount in their Starbucks account which could be used in future to make purchases using the Starbucks card, for which they are rewarded. In a way, you are lending the money to Starbucks at 0% interest which is used by the company in investing ventures. Today the company has an elephantine amount of $1.5B lying in the Starbucks account in contrast to the 85% of the US banks having less than $1B worth of assets. As Starbucks doesn’t have the obligation to repay in cash but coffee, it has the potential to build a fully-fledged currency of its own. If Starbucks was a bank, it would be the 385th biggest in the country. The evolving bank had such a strong impact on the economy that the inauguration of new stores escalated prices of the nearby real estates which is popularly called the ‘Frappuccino effect’.


The romantic coffee culture of preparing each order by dexterous hands appeals to connoisseurs of every generation and the unique business strategy is likely to inflate the Starbucks economic bubble further, wrapping the world in its aroma.





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