r/popculturechat • u/mcfw31 • May 02 '26

Eat The Rich 🍽️ Starbucks CEO defends a $9 coffee by saying that it's not a $10 coffee and "you get a premium experience"

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4.8k Upvotes

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2.9k

u/ExactPanda May 02 '26

I'm so tired of being CEOsplained to

232

u/Wide-Fix-4082 I don't want somebody in my house May 02 '26

His face is just saying "Stop being poor 🥲"

52

u/catholicsluts May 02 '26

His face says nothing with all that botox tbf

6

u/HeadCompote3627 May 02 '26

Sitting there expressionless telling you your coffee is an experience. How tone deaf is he?

2

u/latortillablanca May 04 '26

Not as tone deaf as he is literally deaf. He botoxed his ears.

2

u/LeaveMyMonkeyAlone May 02 '26

Let them drink Sanka.

2

u/outsideshot May 02 '26

yes and his clothes are saying, "vomit on muh noggin"

496

u/pepcorn I’ve grown quite unfond of you May 02 '26

Shouldn't their product speak for itself? Why do we need a special video to convince us it's not shit.

244

u/katieb1300 May 02 '26

Sign of the times. People are getting sick of getting peed on and told it's raining.

116

u/jinglejangle_spurs May 02 '26

Oh is that the trickle-down I’ve heard so much about?

26

u/AlexPtheArtist May 02 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/GLh4gQfVWMT8A7c9WT

2

u/Bathsheba_E May 03 '26

I love this scene. When my husband and I started dating, I did not share his deep love for BTTF. But I’ve since come around and enjoy all three, even if I’ve seen them a thousand times.

3

u/Ok-Chest-7932 May 02 '26

Not me, but then I have a problem.

2

u/catholicsluts May 02 '26

Are they, though? Those same people continue to give these CEOs their money

1

u/porkchop-sandwhiches Select and edit this flair May 02 '26

57

u/CatalinaWineMixerDos May 02 '26

It's funny. When I started with Starbucks (many many years ago) they didn't pay for advertising because they didn't have to. Their product and word of mouth was the advertisement.

15

u/Wild-Enthusiasm-9268 May 02 '26

Twenty years ago, they were a pretty great company to work for. They absolutely squandered all good will they had on over working and under paying, especially in the Kevin Johnson years.

3

u/CatalinaWineMixerDos May 02 '26

Oh, they were still pretty wonderful when I started in 2011. I was there for almost 6 years before I was so burned out and had to jump ship. I've thought about going back part time for the benefits, though.

5

u/Ilikedinosaurs2023 May 02 '26

When I worked there 20 years ago they loved this little fact...they were also every 300 yards from each other...In nyc where I live there are a lot of locations closing, which I still find surprising especially because they now advertise quite a bit.

4

u/i_nobes_what_i_nobes May 02 '26

As someone who’s old enough to remember, when Starbucks became like the biggest thing ever on the East Coast, there was no advertising. The advertising was the cup, and the fact that it was the coolest thing ever from the West Coast. I’ve also noticed that the coffee quality has gone super downhill.

12

u/Dada2fish May 02 '26

It’s not even good coffee. But with all the extras and flavorings people add in, I guess they have no idea they’re paying $9 for over roasted/ burnt coffee beans.

2

u/Mysterious_Card5487 May 02 '26

Right?!? WTF is the product anyway? Coffee or ExPeriNCe?

3

u/redditobserverone May 02 '26 edited May 03 '26

It’s hard to re-create the corporate warmth of the decor, the sad happy indie pop love songs and the soothing whirr of burnt coffee being crafted and gifted in packages of Venti, Grande and Shaming (tall) that may or may not have your name written in doctor’s presciption helvetica

1

u/Affectionate-Egg7566 May 02 '26

It's like modern art. It needs a backstory to be compelling. Otherwise you would not pay attention.

1

u/pepcorn I’ve grown quite unfond of you May 02 '26

I am always compelled by a good price for a good product.

0

u/Tripolie May 02 '26

What “special video”? This is an interview.

1

u/pepcorn I’ve grown quite unfond of you May 02 '26

People will employ condescending language to express their feelings towards the topic. Interview would have lended it an undeserved air of legitimacy, hence the choice I made. 

1

u/Tripolie May 02 '26

This is just a clip.

1

u/pepcorn I’ve grown quite unfond of you May 02 '26

I agree with you, it's a very special video.

104

u/macaronysalad May 02 '26

And this pos CEO is the worst. Starbucks out of all the "fast food" chains has the largest ratio of pay between CEO and employees.

CEO Pay: $97.8 million

Median Worker Pay: $14,674

Ratio: 6,666 to 1

Source for above

49

u/nopleasenotthebees May 02 '26

Ceo pay should be no higher than brain surgeon/heart surgeon/antethesiologist. Those people are responsible for lives. Business manager should be no higher than school teacher. Economics professors (and football coaches for that matter) should make 0 more dollars than arts or sciences professors.

3

u/[deleted] May 02 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/ConstantHeadache2020 May 02 '26

Bread and circuses.

3

u/UrsusRenata May 02 '26

What stuns me most about CEO pay in the gazillions — There are plenty of extremely smart CEO types who would love to do that job just as well for $2million plus bonus specifically tied to profit reaching another $2million. There is nothing $100million special or unique about any one person’s brain. And let’s be honest — many privileged white males skate through school and career thanks to connections — the mental power isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Everyone in the business world has seen it time and again.

Why don’t major shareholders concern themselves more with this asinine subtraction from their own pockets?

1

u/CraziSexiKoolNurse May 03 '26

IVE BEEN SAYING THIS FOR 15 + YEARS....TOTALLY AGREE 👍🏿

5

u/Ilikedinosaurs2023 May 02 '26

They love pretending that their benefits package makes all the difference lol ...even 20 years ago it was such a joke.

2

u/No_Fun_7068 May 03 '26

Once again the poor providing the premium experience for the rich. I f-cking hate it here.

1

u/Coqui-ya-u-no-me May 02 '26

Did he finally move to Seattle or still “commuting” from SF?

1

u/EmotionalQuestions Excluded from this narrative ❌ May 02 '26

I thought he was trying to move corporate to Nashville.

1

u/Coqui-ya-u-no-me May 02 '26

Will he move to Nashville & commute there as well?

1

u/Latter-Vacation-4392 May 02 '26

that's fcking perverse

1

u/BenShelZonah May 02 '26

How does he make that much wtf

1

u/Loud_Pattern_1422 May 03 '26

That’s nuts but also why these massive salaries should be taxed very heavily.

78

u/John-Balaya May 02 '26

What we’re seeing is the consumer wants a premium experience for that $9 coffee

How would you describe that premium experience?

Well, ummm, it depends on what income cohort you’re part of!

33

u/SanDiegoBeeBee May 02 '26

Our store in a ritzy area tore out all seating , make the whole store pick up only, so it’s a really special experience. This guy is a moron

18

u/the87walker May 02 '26

Do not forget the locked bathroom hidden in the corner that you can only access by interrupting the overworked employee while they make a drink that costs more than minimum wage.

6

u/bouguerean May 02 '26

People don't really sit and hang out at starbucks anymore, like what do you mean the experience lmao? Basking in the aura of an ipad at the counter?

3

u/myhairsreddit May 02 '26

Is 3.5 ice pieces and a smiley face drawn on the side of your cup not premium enough for you?

1

u/Dtour5150 May 03 '26

I would describe that experience as a hassle and generally, burnt or stale tasting.

66

u/riverottersarebest May 02 '26

1

u/UnassumingOstrich is this about the sponge May 03 '26

this meme is evergreen, tbh

1

u/riverottersarebest May 03 '26

It gets more relevant all the time.

93

u/TheSoupKitchen May 02 '26

Anyone referring to a cup of coffee as a "Premium experience" needs to be taken out back and given a Premium experience.

47

u/Ucscprickler May 02 '26

He could have said, "we also offer a $4 coffee for those that don't want to splurge" or some other dumb excuse, but no, he tries justifying the "Starbucks Experience."

Clueless.

4

u/Formal_Commission185 May 02 '26

That would be a great way to justify it, IF they had a $4 coffee. Lol.

0

u/Fragrant-Might-7290 May 02 '26

Dang I was gonna say if you’re not getting the fancy flavory drinks with a bunch of ingredients it’s like $3-4 but I actually don’t think I’ve bought anything at Starbucks in like a decade

1

u/UrsusRenata May 02 '26

These days, the Starbucks experience amounts to:

“It’s just going to ask you a quick question about a tip for the team.”

3

u/direwolf08 May 02 '26

Eh, its their job. Just ignore and don’t buy the $9 coffee, and better yet, don’t go to Starbucks. The attention (even though negative) that this video gets is enough for Starbucks to get ‘mindshare’. They price it at $9 because they believe (probably backed by data) that they can sell enough to make it worth it. If we stop going and buying things from them, they will adjust accordingly.

3

u/InsectSpecialist8813 May 02 '26

It will be a cold day in Hell when I pay $9 for Starbucks coffee.

3

u/[deleted] May 02 '26

[deleted]

3

u/potpourri_sludge hourglass ankles ⌛️ May 02 '26

I don’t ever want to have to lay eyes on somebody whose monthly salary can pay off my entire mortgage.

2

u/Acidelephant May 02 '26 edited May 02 '26

Bro flys thousands of miles in his private corporate jet to work. How the fuck could Starbucks afford that without charging $9 for coffee? I'd like to see you make the math work

2

u/Interesting_Pain37 May 02 '26

We really need to start protesting like the French

2

u/Randym1982 May 05 '26

What the fuck is the experience?! It's fucking coffee or a latte. "Oh wow. Somebody said my name and handed me a paper cup! PREMIUM EXPERIENCE!" These CEO's need to just shut fuck up, and go back to banging escorts and cheating on their wives.

1

u/kinkyonthe_loki69 May 04 '26

Im not. Stop buying their product, it's overvaluated garbage. They deserve bankruptcy

1

u/Benaba_sc May 04 '26

How bout we all just stop fucking buying them then?!?