I used to live in a suburb area a few years ago. There was an Ediya coffee store about a 15-minute drive from home. Ediya is a well-known coffee chain for reasonably priced drinks with satisfying quality of products. I'm a fan of their toffee nut latte and mint chocolate chip flatccino, which are the signature menus of the chain. So, I often visited there. However, when I was looking for a better experience but still wanted to relax with a familiar atmosphere, I went to a Starbucks store located about a 30-minute drive from home.
Up until then, I had been indifferent when some people showed their love for Starbucks outright and tried to convince me of the greatness of the Starbucks. Then I started to feel like I was falling in love with Starbucks. I wanted to know what made me prefer Starbucks over other coffee stores at the time. I finally found the reason.
When it comes to the store appearance, both the Starbucks and the Ediya store are modern, clean, and spacious. But I noticed a significant difference between them. Starbucks has maintained its continuity across all stores, in terms of products, customer service, and even atmosphere. Living in the suburb area, I was missing the life of the big city, the vibe of the modernized urban area. Whenever I visited the Starbucks store, it still gave me the same experience that I'd had from the Starbucks store in Seoul. It made me feel like I was in Seoul, my hometown. Such a high degree of continuity was the selling point. It kept me returning to Starbucks.
On the other hand, Ediya has no continuity. Some stores are spacious, others are often too small as a street stall. The standard of hygiene differs from store to store. In addition, the atmosphere has no such consistent theme.
When I ordered iced blended coffee drinks at different locations of both coffee chains, Ediya employees hardly gave me a straw of right size. So I couldn't drink it through the straw, whereas Starbucks employees always gave me the right one appropriately. That kind of experience must have attracted me unconsciously and make me revisit the Starbucks store.
I was getting more and more curious. "What on earth determine different standards of customer service in two companies?" I kept digging for the secret.
It seems that the key factor of such a difference is how they've expanded their businesses. Ediya and many other coffee chains in Korea rely on franchising to grow their businesses.
In a typical franchising arrangement, the franchisor offers proprietary knowledge, process and trademarks, and franchisee sells products or provides a service under the business name. In return, the franchisee pays a certain amount of fees to the franchisor and agrees to comply with certain obligations.
As each store is owned by a different individual, it allows the franchisor to quickly expand its business even with a little amount of capital. Since it is not an equal partnership and franchisor often has the ultimate authority over the franchisee's business, It is quite common to have some disputes between the two parties.
When applying for a part-time job at one of the franchise stores, you're hired by the individual owner, not the franchisor — the company, sometimes even without a written contract. For this reason, part-time employees are easily exposed to exploitation.
On the other hand, all the Starbucks stores in Korea are company-owned. (Globally, there are some licensed stores and a few franchise stores as well.) This way of business expansion requires significant capital investments. However, it allows Starbucks to maintain continuity across its stores. Each store is able to provide its customers the same great experience. This system also features a fast decision making. For example, Starbucks introduced mobile payment earlier than any other coffee chains. The franchise system requires the franchisor to get a consent from each franchisee to introduce a new technology, a new process, or a new service. Starbucks doesn't have to go through such a process.
Starbucks also offers specific trainings for employees including part-timers, which is not the usual case in other franchises. In many other franchises, part-timers are expected to learn through the experience (learn as they work) or they're taught individually by their predecessor. Perhaps this practice can explain my different experiences at Starbucks and Ediya.
As for part-timers, they're hired by the Starbucks Coffee Company, so they are under the protection of employment law.
I learned about the strengths of Starbucks more than those facts but many strong points can be simply explained by their chain business model. I would say, resisting franchising to maintain control over the Starbucks brand and culture has proven to be an insightful and successful strategy.
**This writing is part of my learning process. When I choose a topic to write about, I google and read related articles to learn natural English expressions. I try to make an impromptu speech based on what I learned. Then write down the script. I review my writing and check grammar as far as I can. I have it revised by someone whose first language is English. Lastly, I read aloud the writing many times until I can memorize it.
Up until then, I had been indifferent when some people showed their love for Starbucks outright and tried to convince me of the greatness of the Starbucks. Then I started to feel like I was falling in love with Starbucks. I wanted to know what made me prefer Starbucks over other coffee stores at the time. I finally found the reason.
When it comes to the store appearance, both the Starbucks and the Ediya store are modern, clean, and spacious. But I noticed a significant difference between them. Starbucks has maintained its continuity across all stores, in terms of products, customer service, and even atmosphere. Living in the suburb area, I was missing the life of the big city, the vibe of the modernized urban area. Whenever I visited the Starbucks store, it still gave me the same experience that I'd had from the Starbucks store in Seoul. It made me feel like I was in Seoul, my hometown. Such a high degree of continuity was the selling point. It kept me returning to Starbucks.
On the other hand, Ediya has no continuity. Some stores are spacious, others are often too small as a street stall. The standard of hygiene differs from store to store. In addition, the atmosphere has no such consistent theme.
When I ordered iced blended coffee drinks at different locations of both coffee chains, Ediya employees hardly gave me a straw of right size. So I couldn't drink it through the straw, whereas Starbucks employees always gave me the right one appropriately. That kind of experience must have attracted me unconsciously and make me revisit the Starbucks store.
I was getting more and more curious. "What on earth determine different standards of customer service in two companies?" I kept digging for the secret.
It seems that the key factor of such a difference is how they've expanded their businesses. Ediya and many other coffee chains in Korea rely on franchising to grow their businesses.
In a typical franchising arrangement, the franchisor offers proprietary knowledge, process and trademarks, and franchisee sells products or provides a service under the business name. In return, the franchisee pays a certain amount of fees to the franchisor and agrees to comply with certain obligations.
As each store is owned by a different individual, it allows the franchisor to quickly expand its business even with a little amount of capital. Since it is not an equal partnership and franchisor often has the ultimate authority over the franchisee's business, It is quite common to have some disputes between the two parties.
When applying for a part-time job at one of the franchise stores, you're hired by the individual owner, not the franchisor — the company, sometimes even without a written contract. For this reason, part-time employees are easily exposed to exploitation.
On the other hand, all the Starbucks stores in Korea are company-owned. (Globally, there are some licensed stores and a few franchise stores as well.) This way of business expansion requires significant capital investments. However, it allows Starbucks to maintain continuity across its stores. Each store is able to provide its customers the same great experience. This system also features a fast decision making. For example, Starbucks introduced mobile payment earlier than any other coffee chains. The franchise system requires the franchisor to get a consent from each franchisee to introduce a new technology, a new process, or a new service. Starbucks doesn't have to go through such a process.
Starbucks also offers specific trainings for employees including part-timers, which is not the usual case in other franchises. In many other franchises, part-timers are expected to learn through the experience (learn as they work) or they're taught individually by their predecessor. Perhaps this practice can explain my different experiences at Starbucks and Ediya.
As for part-timers, they're hired by the Starbucks Coffee Company, so they are under the protection of employment law.
I learned about the strengths of Starbucks more than those facts but many strong points can be simply explained by their chain business model. I would say, resisting franchising to maintain control over the Starbucks brand and culture has proven to be an insightful and successful strategy.
**This writing is part of my learning process. When I choose a topic to write about, I google and read related articles to learn natural English expressions. I try to make an impromptu speech based on what I learned. Then write down the script. I review my writing and check grammar as far as I can. I have it revised by someone whose first language is English. Lastly, I read aloud the writing many times until I can memorize it.
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