Last Sunday while shopping in Machida, a city about 12 to 15 miles S.E. of the center of Tokyo, my friend and I enjoyed a great cup of coffee at Starbucks. Machida's streets and stores were bustling with Christmas shoppers.
The Machida Starbucks is located on the second floor of the eight story upscale Tokyu department store. Tokyu's a beautiful store and the Starbucks is located in the most prominent place in it. About 15 chairs line an outside window with a great view of the streets below. Except for the fact that the clients were all Japanese and the menu's in Japanese, it looked like a typical Starbucks in the U.S.
At noon the Starbucks was packed with about 40 people, and the four employees behind the counter could just barley keep up with the flow of customers.
I don't know the price of Starbucks coffee sold in the U.S., but at the Machida Starbucks a short Coffee of the Day cost 250 yen (tall 290 yen); a short Espresso cost 250 yen (tall 300) and a Cafe Mocha 300 yen (tall 340 yen). For comparison, there was a desert restaurant located nearby on the same floor. It was about a quarter full with customers and a coffee there cost 550 yen.
I noticed many customers reading a brochure highlighting Starbucks's Christmas sales. The Machida Starbucks didn't have any of the brochures that tell the history Starbucks or describe coffees and how to prepare them. I've seen these brochures in Starbucks stores in the U.S., and I'm surprised the store didn't have any. I think they'd be great for spreading information about Starbucks in Japan. Also, I think the Starbucks in Japan could sell a lot of T and sweat shirts with the Starbucks logo. Shirts with English on them are very popular in Japan, and Starbucks has a great logo.
The first Starbucks I saw in Japan, one of the first to open, was in the Ginza ward of Tokyo. Ginza's the 5th Avenue of Tokyo. That Sunday 20 to 30 people were lined up outside the store!
I first bought Starbucks stock a few months after the company went public. I had just returned to Japan from a vacation in Seattle. I was so impressed with the coffee and the atmosphere of the stores. At the Seatac airport, on an afternoon when the airport was not so busy, I was amazed to see a steady stream of people buying coffee at a small Starbucks Kiosk. Hardly anyone was in the airport, but about 20 people were in line, including a few flight attendants and pilots. I remember just after buying the stock I saw an article in which one analyst recommended shorting Starbucks. He made the comment, "Wish upon a falling Starbucks." Peter Lynch says he discovered most of his best stocks at the department stores. I bet that analyst never even saw a Starbucks before he recommend shorting it.
I've lived in Japan for 14 years. It's my opinion that Starbucks has found a niche in this country and will do very, very well here.
Mike |
