More handpicked essays just for you.
Coffee shop observation studies
Coffee shop using the natural observation method essay
Coffee shop observation studies
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
My research location is one of the most popular coffee shop in the city which is Starbucks that located at California and Sprues street in San Francisco. I am interested in this topics because it controls my attention to keep watch what others are doing and what is going on near me. This topic has a potential sociological significant because coffee shop is one of the most popular places that many people want to go. Starbucks is a famous coffee shop in the United States that has many customers. The, majority of customers were students who carrying bags, holding lap tops and books as well as a big number of Sutter Health Hospital employees who wear their uniforms and looking in their break time. Also there were a group of police officers who …show more content…
were in duty. I go to this coffee shop more than three times a week for study. Every time, when I get there, Starbuck’s baristas are very busy to help people buy food or coffee more effectively. They serve very quickly to minimize the time for waiting and to make it more valuable for people. Every time when I go there I planned the first 30 minutes for observations.
I sit on the middle of the coffee shop to watch the whole environment. There were different kinds of customer who interact differently: Some came to the coffee shop for study with their friends or classmates. Some came to coffee shop to meet their friends. Some bought coffee/food/. In order to evaluate this, I created a customer adventure categories.
The majority of the customers are college or university students who came to do their assignment individually or in group. Some come to the coffee shop and grabbed food from shelves and then went to the casher. Some looked around the surroundings to find empty sittings and then put their stuff on the sitting that they found. Then they went to the food area to pick food and takes time on reading the ingredients list found on the package. Also, a group of people, particularly, who had friends waiting for them, went to a table, put down their stuff like school bag, lap tops and then went to the line to buy a
…show more content…
coffee. There were a lot of people who stood in front of the coffee-making area. I guess, they were waiting their order. Some were eating food, cake, sandwiches and fruits. Some were opening their bags to pay and putting the wallet/card into the bag, and zipping the bags. When the barista call their name for pick up, they grab their coffee in their left hand and lid with their right hand to cover the coffee. The coffee shop is open 24 hours and I usually go there from 6:00 pm-12:00pm every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Also, 6:00pm-8:00pm is a very specific time, probably the breaks of Sutter Health Hospital employees and police officers. This time a break time that people were very hungry or sleepy and needed something to eat or drink to stay awake for the rest of their work time. During those days and time I observe the same behaviors during the first, second and the third observation because most of the people who came there are either students, Sutter Health Hospital employees, group of police officers or people who was working physical activities.
For example, I recognize people who came there most of the time with their uniforms like medical employees. In addition, a group of police officers came to the coffee shop to buy coffee. The officers are both male and female and they made conversation in group and they were laughing each other on the back side entrance. I saw few people who sit alone at the table and they are busy on their phone. I think, they were watching movies or just checking their emails. On the other side, more people sit in groups who are 2-4 people and discussing about their homework. There were many people who left the coffee shop when they couldn’t find a sitting. Additionally, there were many groups of people who stood together in the self-service area, in conversation about games with coffee in their hands.
When I Observe in the coffee shop, I try to compare the activities between people who grabbed their wallet or card when stepping into the coffee shop and people who prepared when they were in the line. This shows me that different people have different characteristics, some prefer being fully prepared before starting to do anything, while others do
not. Most of the time, the coffee shop is crowded and the spaces is packed. In addition it’s noisy because most of the customer came in groups. Due to those reasons some people leave the coffee after they get their orders. People wanted to spend out the time for waiting. They did not want to interact with other unfamiliar people, especially in a short time. Or maybe, they were accustomed to spending their waiting time on their phone under most circumstances. Also some People did not like to sit in a same table with strangers. I saw a few rude homeless people who came to the coffee shop and the people skip the sittings near them.
Fish’s depiction of the process of buying a coffee now is an unfair stereotype, as not everyone has experienced what he describes. For example Fish states, “if you are patient and stay in line (no bathroom breaks), you get to put in your order,” (Fish). The bathroom comment was quite unnecessary because nobody gets bathroom breaks for long lines. This quote by Fish was illogical for his argument. Fish continues, stating that when one receives a coffee, the “real problem” is how the coffee accessories are placed. There are too many of them, Fish believes, and the order is random. This is not true for most coffee shops. Typically in coffee shops, the dairy is together, the sugars are neatly piled, the straws and napkins are stacked tidily. Of course, there are coffee shops now that are how Fish described. However, he only describes a percentage of coffee shops, not all of them. Fish should have made that clear in his argument. To continue, Fish writes about people fighting over the accessories and balancing coffee in one hand. This comment is almost theatrical in its description. The scene Fish depicts is rarely seen at coffee shops. Fish’s argument does not represent a realistic representation of all coffee shops. Fish does not state this, therefore being unreliable in his
Caribou created interactive experiences with the co-create blend, the Yummmkins scavenger hunt and the Barista Barge. The tactics involved the customers and let them have a fun experience with their coffee. Other than the research that showed the treat seeker audience is social, Caribou did not use the knowledge of their audience to accomplish their
Inside the coffee shop, a great deal of thought has been put into spatial distribution. The space is small, but every square centimeter is utilized for sitting, ordering and preparing and displaying food. The floor plan allows customers to move in a structured way to order and then sit down or leave. The floor plan is similar to a continuous circular flow of costumers, that starts when you walk in the door and ends when you leave. Like an assembly line, this suggests that Canadian culture is very rigid and structured. The sitting area consists of small tables that let only three people sit comfortably at one time. The sitting chairs are upright with a hard surface; they're not comfortable and relaxing in the least bit. Upbeat easy rock music plays in the background, this music is very safe in that all ages can identify and accept it while still loud enough to not hear the noisy kitchen in the back. Bright lights, along with the chairs, tables and music create an atmosphere and mood that does not allow people to get too comfortable.
Some go right for the shopping carts, while others head for the ATM machine only to discover the posted sign “out of service” those customers head straight to the door maybe to find another ATM machine while the other customers head straight for customer service to return purchases and to pay bills, but before they can return their purchases those customers have to join very long line with only two employees at the cash register with a line that is hardly moving. Further down following the other customer along the aisle you get a quite discovery of just who the customers really are by the choice of product they choose and how long they linger in a specific area whether it is making a decision on what product to buy or a spur of the moment purchase. The most populated area by far that I have o...
The ethnographic study took place at McDonalds’ shop, Leeds, local market in the afternoon of Monday, 17th January 2011. From away I could observe the huge logo of McDonalds. I stood at the entrance and stared at the shop for few seconds. The shop was far more elegant than the average McDonald’s. The interior has a minimal style with posh chairs, tables, black art deco fixtures, beautiful paintings and attractive lights and draperies. There were large windows so it was impossible for customers to see into the Harvey Nichols store. Also, outside were window boxed filled with flowers or greenery. I could hear some relaxing music. At first glance, I noticed that customers were people with different age groups, genders, ethnic classes, social classes and cultural backgrounds. The language which was more spoken was English. [Without thinking, I was moving towards the counter, I faced] the girl behind the counter [; she] was wearing a red t-shirt with a cap and a hut. She seemed to be in a rush to handle the orders. Despite that, she was friendly and with a smile on the face to welcome the customers. The most co...
By using observation methods, a wide variety of behavior can be recorded. Picking through the garbage on the side of the road can reveal behaviors of fast-food customers, or sitting for only one hour in the university canteen to understand the gender differences in choosing a diet meal, or even watching the customer’s behavior from deciding which yogurt to be taken off its store shelves in the supermarket can also answer the question: Are the customers attracted by its appearance or flavor or price or brand or nutrition? The aim of this observation assignment is to evaluate and explain the different types of interactions between individuals and groups present, as well as the environment in which these interactions take place. The field observation was conducted at the Vietnamese fast-food restaurant named “We love Banhmi” in Budapest, and the role adopted, was that of observer as a non-participant. Group structures as well as overall activity, patterns of behavior, and the duration and timing of such behaviors and interactions were observed and recorded.
This unique vending idea is particularly significant in a quickly world where technology is attracting more modified and where communal connections are lessening; the clients can bargain some human interaction in their normal lives in a Starbucks store. In spite of what Moore clarifies by demanding that Starbucks is by distant the leader in the industry they have produced. There are numerous disapprovals fronting Starbucks about their single method to customers.
Starbucks is a company in which purchases and roasts high quality whole bean coffees and sells them along with fresh, rich-brewed, Italian style espresso beverages, a variety of pastries and confections, and coffee-related accessories and equipment (starbucks.com). During my environmental scan in which took place at the Starbucks on the corner of Fair and Newport across the street from vanguard, I noticed many things in which where never brought to my attention in prior stays and visits at Starbucks; such as the many social groups in which choose to have their meetings at Starbucks. Thus in this essay we will discuss things in which many people do not really notice when going to Starbucks.
The objective of this paper is to perform market research for Starbucks’ President, Charles Shultz to ascertain the possibility of establishing new coffee houses in China. The preliminary research and design for presentation to Mr. Schultz includes: 1) Two to three alternative target customer segments; 2) the types of secondary research used; 3) the problem statement; 4) research questions used to guide the study; 5) major competitors for this market; and 6) the cultural, economic, and political factors that need to be considered in China.
Starbucks is an international coffee house and it was created in 1971 when they opened the first store in Seattle, Newcastle. Currently, they own 21,000 stores in 65 different countries of the world, and their passion for the great coffee, excellent service and community interaction exceeds cultures and languages (Starbucks, 2014). This company is the number 1 brand coffeehouse chain in the world due to the best roaster, marketer and seller of speciality coffee. Its main slogan: “Our mission: to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time” (Jurevicius, 2013).
With clear core values towards providing quality coffee, the best service, and atmosphere, Starbucks has enjoyed great success since it was founded 30 years ago. The company has being doing very well for last 11 years with 5% or more store sales increase, even with the rest economy still reeling from the post-9/11 recession. However recent research, conducted to Starbucks, have showed some concerns regarding company’s problem meeting customers’ expectations.
Caf? Expresso, as the first mover in the coffeehouse marketplace, which has expanded quickly and become one of the ?big three? players in the global coffee shops chain. However, recently this company is continuously facing a lot of problems in terms of its staff, easy-copied business model and product range, resulting this company lost its leading position to the number three. Therefore, its adjusted visionary goal is ?return Caf? Expresso to the number one position in the marketplace? (Beardwell, 2010). To achieve this goal, Caf? Expresso identifies ?the coffee drinking experience? is significant to achieve competitive advantage and customer value-added, which was delivered through three key elements (graph 1),
The cafeteria serves about one hundred and fifty residents of Cambridge Hall and approximately one hundred residents from Nottingham Hall. The cafeteria serves hot foods, salads, snacks, sandwiches, and beverages. The data has given me information on the percentage of customers that preferred a hot meal (interactive and precooked) to snacks, the ratio of customers that prefer precooked hot meals over an interactive hot meal, line formation, service times at the different stations, arrival times and the location of the different stations. I also learned that the peak hours of operations are from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and that the cafeteria has two cash registers available but only one is being utilized during the peak hours. If customers decide on a hot meal there is a 2 to 1 ratio that customers will purchase a precooked meal over an interactive meal. Through an informal customer survey, reasonable waiting times were established for the precooked line (5 minutes), the interactive line (10 minutes), and the cashier payment line (1minute).
The once small coffee house in Seattle, Washington has now turned into the most prominent coffee company in the world. Some people would say a trip to Starbucks is a treat, others it has become a daily ritual. It was able to grow into such a successful company because of the experience they made for each customer that walked through their doors. Offering a variety of high quality coffees to people all over the world and giving them the home away from home atmosphere. By staying true to their company mission statement, “To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time”, they were able to stand out more then any other company, and ultimately reach success.
As college students, for example, when we walk in to the Caf, there are so...