As someone who completed college about half a year ago, I am still in the process of digressing away from the “locked up for hours on end in a study room” mindset to the newfound daily regime of work, gym, and falling asleep with my laptop on my lap in my bed. This monotonous routine is what I have come to discover as part of the harsh reality of life after college. Scrambling around on my two sacred days off, where all I want to really do is sleep in until 10 a.m. (I know what you all are thinking, but being up at 7 a.m. for work makes sleeping until 10 seem like bliss) and catch up with friends for drinks later, errands become a standard check list in which my days off consist of. One big errand for me has been job hunting after college. It’s hard, exhausting and easy to lose hope, but you only get out of it what you put into it.
Coming out of my academic mindset, where it seemed I didn’t learn what study habits worked best for me until my second to last semester, I am still trying to find my happy medium of “adulting” and still being able to get things accomplished in a setting that works for me. Silence, minimal distractions, fuel to keep me going (coffee and snacks) and headphones with the ambiance of Lana Del Ray melodies are what really make me hone in on what I need to accomplish. Every bit of my requirements screams COFFEE SHOP, or at least you would think it would until you sit down at the neighborhood Starbucks which is nestled, for profitable purposes, ever so strategically on the corner of what feels like the intersection of Broadway and 7th Avenue in Times Square. To me a coffee shop screams books, homework, friendly chats and delectable espressos…or did I just watch Friends one times too many growing up?
Whenever I sit down at a Starbucks, the only thing that really pleases me in my visit is the aroma of the coffee, the good quality beverage (with a high price tag attached) and the satisfaction of feeling a tad bit cultured from consuming their products due their methodically-developed upper echelon branding elements. I get fussy, hot, cramped and agitated within the fifteen minutes of me getting settled at a nightstand sized table. The space inside their lobbies is sparse, probably so they have a higher turnover rate in traffic, and it is just plain loud. Loud kids and demanding customers ordering, machines roaring, names being belted out and there of course is always that obnoxious person on the phone-and that’s not even in their peak business hours.
I am not in the slightest bit discrediting their products or brand, I just wish that they had some sort of creative direction that would question and recognize what they could potentially do better to serve their millennial market in which I am sure a large portion of their target demographic consists of. So, after driving around the other day to find somewhere besides my alma mater’s library to go and get some job hunting done, among other tasks, I spent almost an hour debating which part of town I should drive into. Of my options in each neighborhood I knew two things- Starbucks is what I desired, but I would get zero accomplished, and their orange and pink logoed competitor, Dunkin’ Donuts, is always just a few blocks away. So, I let my guard down, bit my tongue on giving up my grande Caramel Macchiato for a medium iced with skim and Almond Joy flavoring(yum) and dived in. I was impressed, and I will break it down in three simple reasons.
First, it was QUIET! Granted, the time of day probably was not a peak hour for them, nor do they serve as high of volume of customers, but still, there was room. Arm chairs, booths and tables off away from the registers and kitchen did the trick. Not one time was I annoyed, cramped or distracted as much as I usually am in my coffee shop escapades. The staff was accommodating and personable, and I could understand their jargon! I even got offered a complimentary refill on my coffee.
Second, they’ve actually thought it out! There are quiet zones! I mentioned to the helpful associate that I was glad it was ambient in the shop and he even took me around the corner to show me that tucked away near the bathrooms was a study area I could utilize. I was even informed that other locations had private rooms! Hello! This is better than the campus study rooms, where you couldn’t bring food and had to resort to vending machine snacks!
Also, as many of us know, that really no matter what age you are, some DO have to budget and watch their expenses more than others. DD grazed my pocket, but didn’t gash it. While it is like comparing an Audi to a VW in some perspectives, still to me coffee is coffee. Prices were reasonable, and there was a nifty menu with some delicious options, some healthy, some not so much. Side note, the Almond Joy sweetener is sugary and assuredly fattening, but boy is it good! The company even offers perks and rewards that you can take advantage of right away rather than waiting around for a few points to accumulate. I found offers and coupons on their app, and even saw some in my mail coincidentally. They’re clipped and in my glove box. And if that’s not enough, there is more! In my market, the Dunkins offer a Happy Hour with awesome deals and savings.
It is safe to assume that I gave all fives on the survey on the back of my receipt, and I definitely will redeem my free donut on my next visit. Dunkin’ simply appeased my out-of-college study habits for three reasons-it was quiet, accommodating and cheap! What more do you need from a coffee shop besides good beverages and groovy color schemes?
