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Starbucks spends $1 billion to bring comfy chairs back

Starbucks is hoping to create a space that encourages customers to put down their digital devices, feel comfortable and even converse with others. ©Image Credit: Unsplash / Hamza Inayat

If you're one of the many people who have been less than impressed with the subpar seating in Starbucks lately, you're in for a pleasant surprise. The company has announced it will spend a whopping $1 billion to bring back the fan-favorite comfy chairs.

A plan to lure customers back to shops

Starbucks is one of the most well-known coffee brands out there, but that doesn't mean it's insulated from declining foot traffic and sales.

Over the past nine months, the company has made more than 1,000 renovations, with thousands more to come, all to lure people back to hanging out in coffee shops.

Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol says the plan is to transform up to 9,000 locations into an oasis for the "lonely and disconnected" people. Since he was named CEO two years ago, he has focused on a turnaround effort labeled "Back to Starbucks".

Appealing to those who are over the digital age

The digital age has been incredible in so many ways, but it's also had unintended negative consequences. For many people, it has led to a feeling of being disconnected from others.

Creating spaces that offer comfy armchairs and hardcover books, along with plants meant to create an inviting atmosphere that entices people to hang out and converse. In other words, put their digital devices down.

“Starbucks is back,” Niccol wrote, adding that condiment bars, coffee cup doodles, free refills, retrofitted stores and ceramic mugs are all part of the plan. It's meant to “feel like Starbucks again.”

The renovations are all-encompassing

While the return of comfy chairs may be the most notable move, the renovations are pretty vast. Locations are being fitted with new rugs, chairs with built-in electrical outlets, colorful wall paint, oversized mirrors, curtains and ceramics.

The idea is that your local Starbucks feels less like a faceless, huge international brand, and more like a quaint inviting coffee house.

Give it another chance

If it's been a while since you hit up your local Starbucks, it may be time to give it another chance. The new look and feel could be exactly what you felt it was lacking.

Source: New York Post

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