| Gag Me with a Latte!!Someone just said to me, "I just saw that Starbucks is closing 600 stores... it's a Sign of the Times. They opened all those stores when things were booming, and now they're cutting back? It's scary!" It may be a Sign of the Times, but it is not a Sign of the End Times! Good grief! Rather, it is a Sign that the Market Is Doing What It Is Supposed to Do. The market is contracting, and Starbucks is scaling back, because they have overextended their resources, and they planned poorly for any sudden increases in the cost of matériel and/or labor. And you know, really, these cost increases have not been so "sudden" -- gas prices have jumped a lot in recent weeks, but they've been climbing (from, say, $2/gallon) for years, now. The 'first thing to go' in a rough economy, is the Creature Comfort. Let's face it, a $2.50 cup of coffee is a Creature Comfort, not a necessity. Coffee, per se, might be a necessity(!), but you can always buy a pound of coffee and make a pot yourself. You can, in fact, buy and make better-quality coffee at home, than you could ever hope to waste your money on in a Starbucks. I know, I know, I'm speaking a heresy. But it is a true heresy, if ever there were such a thing. I realize that, in a mental health sort of way, we all need some luxury now and then, a little indulgence to help us relax, and help us pretend that everything is rosy and bright and perfect in the world. But look at it this way: it's a good sign. It means that, as foolish and wasteful as we human beings are, still we are sensible enough to cut back on the unnecessaries for the sake of life and lights together. We are still (somewhat) rational creatures. Or rational self-interested creatures, as the economists say. So, in the immortal words of Douglas Adams, DON'T PANIC!! Well, maybe just a little. |
