Gold Paintball

Gold Paintball

Coffee & the Cult Upgrade

"Friends... I'll tell you all, so we can die with our eyes wide open or escape our fate and certain death together. First, she warns, we must steer clear of the Sirens."

- Odysseus (1)

 

On the edge of manifesting its fourth and latest logo evolution (notably removing the words "Starbucks Coffee" from its green siren icon), Starbucks has been receiving more than the usual Conscientious Hipster and struggling-corner-coffeeshop flack.  And not just because the loyalists hate change. Marketing critics, branding experts, and layman latte-lovers alike are lined around the proverbial corner to decry what has been called "corporate suicide." But if the hope is a new incarnation of the brand (and the company), is corporate suicide really such a bad thing?

The death of the "corporate" image isn't just evolutionary, it's a consumer corporation's dream. The new logo represents the hope – and quite probably the success – of this mythical transition from product to principle, to concept from commodity. Starbucks isn't giving us something to buy. Starbucks is giving us something to believe in.

In a recent doctrinal statement released January 5th, Starbucks senior writer Steve M. writes:

"Here we are today. Our new evolution liberates the Siren from the outer ring, making her the true, welcoming face of Starbucks. For people all over the globe, she is a signal of the world's finest coffee – and much more. She stands unbound, sharing our stories, inviting all of us in to explore, to find something new and to connect with each other... inviting all of us to find what we're looking for, even if it's something we haven't even imagined yet." (2)

The "liberated" Siren (like any good logo) aptly and optimistically reflects the direction the company is heading. In keeping with their most recent seasonal buzzword of "rituals," Starbucks promises not only to deliver coffee, but community, connection, inspiration, a "third place," and (like any good religion) the opportunity of a morning tithe.

In a post-capitalist cultural economy, the object is no longer accrual of wealth, but casualization of wealth. (One could further press the etymology to "casualty" of wealth – certainly arguable, but perhaps beyond the scope of this article.) Here the habitué's daily espresso purchase (materially supererogatory, however momentarily gratifying) doubles as the signifier of subscription – a contribution to an establishment one believes in. The expenditure (made infinitely more casual by use of the automatically-reloading Gold Card) identifies the adherent not so much as wealthy but beyond wealth. And, nearly implausibly, this expenditure will soon be able to purchase the company's newest coffee blend (to be released alongside the new Siren icon) simply titled: "Tribute."

With the ascent of religion-as-trend (think yogic meditation in the workplace, youth group paintball, et al.), what could make more sense than a cult of coffee consumption? Not that any of this is necessarily bad. But it may be worth addressing as culturally significant (unlike the heady debate of whether or not the new logo "looks cool.") (3) Particularly if that logo signals not just a quality product, but, lest we forget, the danger of seduction.

In a cultural clime marked by the conflation of image and identity, frequently one degree away from the genuine article, such a shift is hardly farfetched. After all, "to buy" something slangily means to believe it. The genius of Starbucks' latest campaign boldly capitalizes on this – under the guise of post-capitalism, of course – and in so doing ushers in a new visibility to commodification and what it means to belong. So welcome to the cleaner, crisper, unlabeled and unbounded future of customer satisfaction.

I'll buy that.

 

 

(1) Homer. The Odyssey. (Trans. by Robert Fagles.) Putnam Penguin Inc., New York: 1996. p 276.

(2) http://www.starbucks.com/blog/looking-forward-to-starbucks-next-chapter. 5 January 2011. http://www.starbucks.com/blog/so-who-is-the-siren. 5 January 2011.

(3) It does.

 

About the Author

Amanda Bermudez received her B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies:Theasethicism from Wheaton College.  She is currently studying media, art, & culture at Yale University.

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