Cross-Cultural Issue Cross Cultural Perspective Globalization. Globalization

Cross-Cultural Issue

CROSS Cultural Perspective GLOBALIZATION.

Globalization and Starbucks

Few aspects of individual's lives are more personal than that of the coffee they consume. The Starbucks Corporation has been forced to adjust its offerings and approach to marketing to address the needs and expectations of consumers abroad. There have also been ethical considerations about encroaching upon local businesses, as the Starbucks empire gains worldwide traction. Starbucks has tried to answer these concerns by giving back to the communities in which it has established itself.

Starbucks globalization can best be described as a kind of 'middle path:' Starbucks has attempted to stay true to the basic philosophy of the company without offending local sensibilities. According to its current CEO: "On a country-by-country basis, the largest hurdle we had to overcome was thinking we had to be different. There are regional differences in every market, but the main reason we are successful in the U.S. is the same as why we are successful internationally" (Yunker 2006). However, although Starbucks may believe that its basic ethos remains unchanged, it has had to adapt some of its products and store design to local markets.

Starbucks itself is a kind of a paradox of globalization: although it is an American company, its direction was shaped by the desire of its founders to recreate a Milan coffee shop in the United States. "The reason why we have all those crazy sounding that come in tall, grande, and venti is because one person took the ideas from Italian cafes and implemented them in America" (Hauser 2006). In America, there is still some resistance and push-back to this idea of coffees having 'fancy' sounding names. Yet in most areas of the world, Starbucks seems quintessentially American. Before venturing into Japan, it was said that Japanese consumers would not violate unspoken cultural taboos about carrying paper take-out coffee cups in the streets (Starbucks Coffee Japan, n.d.). Starbucks ignored this advice, and Japanese customers were quickly seen sporting the cups as fashion statements, an artifact of American culture similar to wearing English lettering on t-shirts in Japan.

Starbucks must tread a delicate balance between not offending local sensibilities while still being a recognizable part of the Starbucks empire. Examples of Starbucks adaptation run the gamut: "the peak time in China is not 7 to 10 in the morning, it is 4 to 6 in the afternoon. And there are also food preferences we had to adapt to. There is the holiday Yorkshire pudding that is big in the UK but does not work in New York. Breakfast sandwiches in Germany, for example, are made up with a hard roll with sausage and tomato and served cold" (Yunker 2006). Based upon different taste profiles in different nations, Starbucks offers a variety of country or region-specific drinks. "The Moka Praline can only be found in France and Spain, while the Marshmallow Mocha is unique to Japan" (Starbucks is taking over the world, 2008, Jellobeans).

Starbucks prides itself on offering a uniform Starbucks experience which combines excellent coffee and quality of service but it partners with local affiliates that know the culture, government structure, and buying habits of local consumers to ensure that the company does not offend any sensibilities (Starbucks Coffee Japan, n.d.). However, establishing a balance between local customs and Starbucks customs has proven to be challenging in some instances. When Starbucks was entering the Japanese market, for example, its commitment to a nonsmoking environment was challenged. Starbucks insisted on a nonsmoking environment, because it feared that cigarette smoke would interfere with the customers' ability to appreciate the coffee in the store, as well as for the ethical issues that surround forcing nonsmokers to inhale second-hand smoke. It was said that Japanese consumers would never accept an environment that did not permit smoking. Eventually, they did, but some Japanese local competitors that did permit smoking were able to profit. Doutor, a Japanese coffee brand, created a Starbucks clone called the Excelsior, which offered more 'real' food than pastries (also keeping in line with Japanese tastes) and a smoking area. "Starbucks unsuccessfully sued Excelsior for using a brand symbol that looked too close to Starbucks' own for comfort. Since then, Excelsior has only grown stronger, both in its operations and its profits" (Lewis 2003).

When partnering with Japanese affiliates, Starbucks brought a more American management style to the table. In Japan, there is little argument at board meetings and the focus is on consensus, rather than contention. "Our Starbucks Coffee Japan meetings are much more dynamic -- the U.S. -- based members tend to focus on what the company has done and make concrete suggestions for improvement. The Japanese members talk knowledgeably about the realities we are facing in the market and the long-term" (Starbucks Coffee Japan, n.d.). However, despite these managerial differences, within the training of employees, the Starbucks Company was able to find common connections between its business model and that of Japanese companies. Japanese companies are very paternalistic, take care of employees, and stress that they provide workers with a family environment. Starbucks Japan similarly strove to provide employees with good benefits and a family atmosphere. It educated employees about coffee, rather than treated them like disposable commodities, as is typical at some fast food restaurants.

Starbucks has often been criticized for crowding out local businesses, but in Japan, many local coffee shops said they were helped, rather than hurt by the revitalized interest Starbucks brought to coffee when it arrived on Japanese shores in 2003. "Starbucks persuaded the Japanese and almost everyone else in the world that there was a hidden benefit to paying inordinately exorbitant fees for a cup of coffee. Overnight, [Japanese] premium coffee regained its pricing power as the same old beans suddenly took on a new air of mystery and sophistication" (Lewis 2003).

Through such efforts, Starbucks has also striven to respond to allegations that as homogenized other cultures and it has been a force of 'Americanizing' local and regional food habits. While Starbucks did bend to some local food traditions in Japan, it also strove to emphasize coffee-drinking within a largely tea-centric culture. But Starbucks Japan has more teas than other Starbucks in American locations and there was already a blossoming coffee culture within Japan when Starbucks launched in the nation. Doutor, Starbucks' Japanese rival, begin to offer its coffee in the 1970s, long before Starbucks was even born. Internally, within Japan there was a demand for quick, breakfast beverages that could be drunk on the way to work, or used to keep a busy office employee awake late into the night (Lewis 2003).