Starbucks staff given ‘panic button’ for laptop lurkers who won’t leave

Clampdown on ‘open door’ stance prompts coffee shop to provide training in conflict de-escalation

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Man sitting in a Starbucks coffee shop on his laptop
Starbucks says it will no longer allow US customers to use its amenities for free Credit: Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images

Starbucks is to install panic buttons for staff as it cracks down on customers who sit in its shops or try to use its lavatories without buying anything.

US workers have been given new guidelines on how to eject customers who stay in the stores for a “prolonged” amount of time, attempt to use lavatories or fill up water bottles without making a purchase, as first reported by Business Insider.

The company is also training workers in conflict de-escalation. According to reports, panic buttons have even been installed in a handful of stores in a trial of how best to keep them secure.

Starbucks said earlier this month that it would no longer allow customers in the US to use its amenities for free, as part of an attempt by Brian Niccol, the new chief executive, to revive the business.

It had previously operated an “open door” stance, first implemented by the chain in 2018 after two men were wrongly arrested in a Philadelphia Starbucks where they were holding a business meeting.

The incident, which was caught on camera, proved embarrassing for the brand. In its wake, the two men met with Kevin Johnson, then-chief executive, to discuss ways Starbucks could prevent similar events in future.

Brian Nicol
Brian Niccol, the chief executive, is trying to turn Starbucks back into a ‘community coffee-house’ Credit: Mark Lennihan/AP

The about-turn comes amid a wider pushback against customers who sit in coffee shops for hours at a time, taking advantage of free wi-fi but not spending more than the cost of one coffee in many cases.

As well as preventing shops from making money by turning tables, so-called laptop lurkers have also been criticised for dampening the environment of bars and coffee shops and turning them into less social spaces.

Mr Niccol, who previously ran the Mexican food chain Chipotle, has been battling to turn Starbucks back into what he has called a “community coffee-house”.

The company has struggled in the past few years. Some consumers have cut back because of higher prices, while it also suffered boycotts over a perceived link with Israel and its actions in Gaza. Starbucks says it has never given money to Israel or its military and that this perception is fuelled by misinformation online.

At the same time, activist investors have bought up shares, piling pressure on its board to revive its performance.

However, the end of Starbucks’ open-door stance raises the prospect that staff could end up in uncomfortable situations when confronting customers. One worker told Fortune magazine: “We know that these situations are going to happen more frequently in our store.”

Mr Niccol’s predecessor, Laxman Narasimhan, was ousted last year after less than two years in the role.

In an open letter to customers following his appointment, Mr Niccol admitted the business was not “always delivering”, saying: “It can feel transactional, menus can feel overwhelming, the product is inconsistent, the wait too long or the hand-off too hectic. These moments are opportunities for us to do better.”

The change of chief executive sparked a rally in the brand’s then-declining share price, but has not been without controversy: the company has been criticised for allowing Mr Niccol to fly between his California home and the business’s Seattle headquarters by private jet, drawing the ire of environmental groups.

A Starbucks spokesman said: “The operational updates being introduced on Jan 27 are for North American stores and are not being implemented internationally (including the UK) at this time. Across Starbucks global markets, licenced and joint venture partners operate stores with locally relevant policies”.