Starbucks Changes Open-Door Policy; customers to ‘buy something to use the toilet or leave’

Starbucks ends open door policy

Starbucks announced Monday that it is changing its open-door policy, which previously allowed anyone to enter its stores regardless of whether they made a purchase. The coffee chain will now require customers to buy something if they want to hang out or use the restroom in its North American stores.
The company has implemented a new code of conduct that will be posted in all company-owned stores throughout North America. The code also prohibits discrimination, harassment, outside consumption of alcohol, smoking, vaping, drug use and panhandling on the premises.
Jaci Anderson, a Starbucks spokeswoman, said the new rules are aimed at prioritizing paying customers, adding that most other retailers already have similar policies in place. “We want everyone to feel welcome and comfortable in our stores,” Anderson said as quoted by the Associated Press. “By setting clear expectations for behavior and use of our space, we can create a better environment for everyone,” she added.
The code of conduct also warned that those who violate the rules will be asked to leave and the store may involve law enforcement if necessary. Starbucks has announced that its employees will receive training to enforce the new policy.
Few people criticized the announcement with one person saying: “This is an absolutely horrible and greedy decision to make. People used to go in there all the time just to study. Starbucks, you’re already on thin ice. Way to put yourself thinner.” While many others questioned its usefulness. “They don’t pay baristas enough to make them pay attention and enforce this,” said one X user.
Some also supported the new policy, calling it a smart business decision. “The most predictable decision ever. You can’t run a business by providing free internet to non-customers sitting at tables meant for actual customers,” said a man identified as Joe 2.0 (@joe4deadcat) on X.
This policy change comes after Starbucks implemented an open-door policy in 2018 following an incident in Philadelphia in which two black men were arrested while waiting for a business meeting without making a purchase. The arrest, which was captured on video, caused considerable embarrassment to the company.
Since then, however, Starbucks employees and customers have faced challenges with unruly and dangerous behavior in stores. In 2022, the company closed 16 locations across the country, including six in Los Angeles and six in Seattle, due to repeated safety concerns such as drug use and other disruptive behavior that threatened staff.
The new rule is part of a larger effort by Starbucks’ new chairman and CEO, Brian Niccol, to breathe new life into the chain’s declining sales. Niccol has expressed his desire to recapture the local coffeehouse atmosphere that Starbucks once had before issues like long drive-thru lines and mobile order backups made visits more difficult.