Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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"It's just unsightly." (self.starbucksbaristas)
submitted by BigMackerels
Sorry, rant. My store's in a very wealthy part of town, but (like a lot of other places) our city is experiencing a huge homelessness crisis. We have two almost-everyday regulars who are homeless. Both pay for their items and sit outside and keep to themselves. Even though there are some mental health issues at play, they aren't violent and they never accost other customers. But as you can imagine, their mere presence is offensive to a lot of our wealthy/entitled customers.
Today I was on DTO/window and a woman pulled up to the order box. Her first words after I greeted her were "I just want to let you know there's a transient out here." I asked her to repeat herself but I knew she was talking about one of the regulars. She said "There's a transient in front." I asked her if he was approaching cars or other customers (I knew he wasn't). She said "No but he's sitting there. I think you should get your manager. It's just unsightly." I responded "He's one of our regulars. He's a paying customer so he's allowed to be here. What can I get started for you?" She got more irritated and said "Well, I think you should rethink your policy," and then ordered. I didn't acknowledge it further with her.
We get complaints about these regulars multiple times a week, just because they exist and they're visible. I can't believe this woman actually admitted that she was complaining because she didn't want to SEE him. Usually customers back down when we ask what exactly the problem is because they're too chicken to say it out loud.
I fucking hate these customers dude. How awful of a person can you be??
Today I was on DTO/window and a woman pulled up to the order box. Her first words after I greeted her were "I just want to let you know there's a transient out here." I asked her to repeat herself but I knew she was talking about one of the regulars. She said "There's a transient in front." I asked her if he was approaching cars or other customers (I knew he wasn't). She said "No but he's sitting there. I think you should get your manager. It's just unsightly." I responded "He's one of our regulars. He's a paying customer so he's allowed to be here. What can I get started for you?" She got more irritated and said "Well, I think you should rethink your policy," and then ordered. I didn't acknowledge it further with her.
We get complaints about these regulars multiple times a week, just because they exist and they're visible. I can't believe this woman actually admitted that she was complaining because she didn't want to SEE him. Usually customers back down when we ask what exactly the problem is because they're too chicken to say it out loud.
I fucking hate these customers dude. How awful of a person can you be??
cherib0mbb 93 points 1y ago
not long after i started working at starbucks, we had a homeless man sitting in our parking lot. not bothering anyone, not blocking a parking space, just sitting there minding his business. we brought him food and water. we had DOZENS of customers come up to us and say “just so you know, there’s a homeless person sitting in your parking lot.” acting all disgusted like entitled people always do. every time someone mentioned him i would say, “we’re aware that he’s there, as long as he’s not bothering you there’s no issue.” and these people got so offended. how can you be offended by someone sitting DOING NOTHING. he did not approach them, they just drove past him and acted like it was the worst thing to ever happen to them. makes me sick. what if that was your parent or sibling, and people treated them like dirt? i wish people would think outside of their tiny little world that’s revolves around them for even a minute.
BigMackerels [OP] 33 points 1y ago
EXACTLY!! It sucks. The lack of empathy is truly mind-boggling. I had a guy tell me once that it was "selfish" of our other regular to live out here when "there are so many resources out there." I gave him the paying customer spiel too and said that we don't know her circumstances and they aren't anyone's business anyway. Like wtf y'all.
lavendersigil 37 points 1y ago
Fuck her. She's the unsightly one.
always_hungryy 21 points 1y ago
One of my favorite customers from my old store was a homeless man. He was amazingly smart, kind, and such a joy to talk to. I still think about him a lot. I miss him and I really hope he is doing okay.
Select_Swordfish_603 14 points 1y ago
Just because they don't have a house doesn't mean they don't have a heart, these people are human, my god
mrcupcake18 13 points 1y ago
We have a few regulars that come I’m almost on a daily basis. Sometimes they just want water and that is totally fine with us. They usually just sit outside and just keep to themselves. We’ve so far haven’t had any issues and I’m glad none of the other customers make a big deal. But yea I have seen this entitlement crap in other work places and it is just disgusting. I always try to help if I can or offer them resources or just let them bend my ear a bit. They are just as human as the rest of as it is disgusting but unfortunately not surprising that some people act this way. Assholes 😠
Malvo1 9 points 1y ago
good for you for shutting down her shit
swollemolle 5 points 1y ago
"You're the unsightly one and you're not even a transient. What can I get started for you today?"
blublazn007 4 points 1y ago
Makes me think of the movie Shallow Hal. I bet he would look gorgeous while she looked like a skank!
mrhammerant 3 points 1y ago
I want a pair of Shallow Hal glasses that I can put on and take off at my convenience.
paigemclachlan 3 points 1y ago
If some of these rude af customers could redirect their negative energy into positive energy, everyone would be so much the happier
bblonde_ish 2 points 1y ago
we have a homeless guy ride his bike over in the morning to use the bathroom, says good morning, then goes about his day. anytime i see him i ask if he would like a water or if i could buy him a coffee but he politely declines and goes about his day. we havent had any complaints about him, everybody else is too worried about hanging over the bar to see if we've made their drink yet lol
spongepants19 2 points 1y ago
We used to get complaints like that too, because we had a lot of homeless customers. They would literally pay for their coffee and just chill. Like what do you want me to do, kick them out when they paid and didn’t do anything? Ugh
snitchesendupinditch 2 points 1y ago
My store is similar, we're in a wealthy tourist area and we have a few homeless regulars. Almost all of them are paying customers, the others only ask for water. One of them is in the store everyday from opening to late afternoon. He always quietly sits at a table in the back corner of the store and keeps to himself and people still find a reason to get upset about it.
[deleted] 1 points 1y ago
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