More than just Coffee

So, I received one of these gift cards as a Secret Santa gift giving a week ago in one of the parties I attended. It was a Starbucks gift card worth $20.

Ok, I thought. This should be good for around 5 or 6 grande Frappuccinos (just about the only thing I buy in Starbucks). In the back of my head though, I wished that I had received the Target or even the Best Buy gift card that other people received.

However, when I went into Starbucks to 'claim' my first frappuccino, I was pleasantly surprised. There were so many other thigns you could buy besides coffee (and I'm not talking about tea!). I guess I never paid attention to the shelves of mugs and other coffee-related items before till now. What interested me were the CD's strategically positioned near the cashier. Hey, they expanded their selection of music! Not just 1 or 2 CD's but a whole shelf of sounds ranging from Bob Dylan to John Legend. I ended up picking an excellent CD of Christmas music.

Along with the CD, my grande frappuccino and the sunday newspaper, I was able to max out and use the gift card all in one transaction... not bad for Starbucks!

I then remembered what I read about Starbucks wanting to become more than just a coffee store... they wanted to branch out to other things and offer services above and beyond just coffee. Well, they're well on their way to achieving that!

La Vita e Bella!