The inspiration for this blog post comes from the movie “Office Space“. Jennifer Aniston has a waitress job that she hates and she is required to wear “flair” at work. She always wears the bare minimum number of “flair” and her boss is always on her case for only doing the bare minimum. She’s fed up with being a waitress and eventually quits her job. My apologies, this blog post will make little sense unless you’re familiar with the movie Office Space.
Ever since I saw the movie Office Space I started to notice all the many little pins that baristas wear all over their aprons and it reminded me of the “flair”. I’m not suggesting with this blog that baristas are really secretly fed up with their jobs or hate their pins!! In fact, I think I’d proud to wear a “Clover” bin on an apron, if I were a barista. It means you’re Clover certified! One big distinction between the “flair” in office space and the million little pins that baristas wear is that a barista earns the pin. I was chatting with a friend about flair who said that Via earrings too count as flair. Technically I think that is “flair”. 🙂
I don’t have 15 green apron pins, and so I’d welcome seeing more of them! In the meantime, let’s continue with “Random Acts of Coffee Passion”!! I think that’s my favorite of the “flair” but it’s so hard to pick. What’s your fave? (Thank you to Larry at Seattle Custom Framing for help with the pics).
[[Edit on 11-7-2009]]
A reader very recently wrote to me because he saw this blog post and wanted to share some of his own Starbucks pins. He emailed me a few images which I am passing along to you-all now. I am a bit kicking my self that I failed to include a V2V pin in my original post, because I am sure that I have one somewhere. At least I hope I haven’t lost it! Please enjoy a few more pieces of flair courtesy of reader contribution:
[[Edit on 11-8-2009]]
A reader wrote to me and wanted to share what a “5 year Anniversary Pin” looks like. This is totally cool. Notice the nice note that comes with the pin, accompanied by a classic H. Schultz autograph:
[[Edit again on 11-8-2009]]
Another reader has contact me with a pic of this barista’s favorite piece of flair!! Worn with great pride!
[[Edit again on 11-10-2009]]
Here’s a Starbucks Chocolate pin image sent to me by another reader! Thank you so much for all the many emails and ways that baristas have contacted me about their flair!
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I like how the green team looks(the whole tree out of a coffee cup) but the Via pin makes me happy because I love Via.
i actually quite enjoy the tazo teapot pin. when i worked for a starbucks kiosk, there was only one pin we could get, and it kind of bummed me out. i’d walk into a regular full-sized starbucks and see all those baristas’ cool pins, and i would inwardly cry over my little lonely coffee cup pins (from 5-star shops).
to this day, i wish i’d kept one. it could go next to my nintendo pins. but, alas, i have none left now.
I sooo wish I had a clover pin! I did get to train on the clover in south beach, Miami. Surely, that must qualify me. 😉
I love my apron pins though hardly get to wear them since I don’t work in store. My faves are the pins from SBUX Spain’s coffee master program that were given to me by their Coffee Ambassador (when I was CA for EMEA 😉 )
Those pins are beautiful…. I would love to see more. Thanks for sharing! My favorite one that is listed here is “random acts of coffee kindness”
Good Coffee Day to You!
I am a barista and I proudly wear my pins, especially all the mug awards that I have received from fellow baristas and my store manager. It means to me that I am offering legendary service and that baristas enjoy working with me because I help them out. I wear them on a SBUX lanyard every day.
I love my pins too. I have my Coffee Master set and all my Green Apron ones.
For me they signify an benchmark and i love that.
I’ve never noticed the flair on the baristas at my Starbucks….I’m going to have to pay more attention when I go in later today.
Love the movie “Office Space”
The only “flair” I want to see at Starbucks is the return of the gold card with it’s discount (which was a good incentive) and scrapping their new rewards card which is just a glorified punch card but with those stupid stars.
Hay Melody have you tried Tully’s yet? I can heardly wait to try out their new one drink.
Great additions…. This should be an ongoing post as your additions grow…Thanks!
I’m like the “Flair Queen” @ my store! I should probably have a cardboard sign that says “will work for pins” LOL To date I have 27 pins on my hat– hardly room for any more. 15 MUGs, the 4-piece Coffee Master set, VIA (of course), 1 green apron- Involved, a Bravo!, coffee & tea passport pins, and a couple others. I live for flair! 🙂
I think its great that you all have flair on the apron to show your accomplishments and passion for Starbucks.
Personally, I just have a simple Starbucks apron with the Starbucks Siren.
Hey Mel I emailed you more of my Starbucks Bling! lets paint the town with pins!
Love What You Do!
Steve I haven’t made it to Tully’s yet. I love the “flair” pins on baristas and can totally appreciate seeing them whether or not I save 10 percent on my purchase.
Sure, I don’t like the new rewards program, and if the lines grow longer because of the new program (splitting transactions) perhaps I will go less often, but none of that affects how much fun I have with Starbucks and the experience in the store.
Just seeing this little pins on green and black aprons gives me a little smile – whether I am in and out of the store in 30 seconds, and sitting around for an hour on my netbook.
Well Melody if you like to patromize Starbucks who values your loyality so much that they take away your gold card and 10% discount on everything and replace it with a glorified puch card with phony stars that gives you a “free” drink that you secretly pay for after 15 transactions that’s your business. Tully’s has a scrumptious drink called Cherry Cordial Mochas for $2.99.
@Steve – I don’t think I want to circle around and around on this. Yes, I agree that the new Gold Card is NOT nearly as advantageous to the most loyal customers as the previous 10% discount was. No, I’m not a real fan of the new program. I still have some questions and concerns about how the new program will play out, and I’ve been meaning to get back to MSI and write a long post in the Ideas in Action area of that site.
But at the end of the day, this is not an issue that makes me angry or sorely disappointed. I have no objection to dropping by other coffeehouses now and then and trying something different, but it’s not like I’m going to go to Trabant Coffee and they’re going to give me 10% off?? In the really large picture, the 10% discount was one very short piece of Starbucks history. I received a FREE Gold Card nearly a month early, and enjoyed a benefit for more than a year – When all is said and done, I’ll have received about 15 months of 10% discount for which I did not even pay a $25 membership fee (though actually I would have).
I am not *entitled* to this perk. Yes, I can recognize lots of problems with the new program, but they’re all just perks at the discretion of Starbucks.
The only Starbucks business decision that makes me crazy, and angry, and often times right on the edge of walking away from being a customer forever is the problems with “brew on demand” and the notion of one-size-fits-all-coffee for a specialty coffeehouse. But you know that story…
love the “random acts of coffee passion”! that is perfection!!
Instead, of a little piece of metal and/or plastic, how about you give me an extra $100 in my paycheck each week? Or how about give us some more labor so we can all be legendary?
Melody, great flair posts (I need to see the movie now!)…. as for your running out of things to write about, the way SBUX keeps changing things and upsetting people, maybe not. 🙂
Between changes to products, loyalty programs, history, and trying to just get what you are supposed to be getting (like the brew-on-demand saga), I think you could go forever.
Wow! An entire blog dedicated to Starbucks! I just wrote one entry in my personal blog about it and thought, “I wonder if anyone writes soley about Starbucks?” And, here you are! Here’s a link to my blog: http://www.nicetomeetyounewyork.blogspot.com/
I love the green apron pins, but I never remember to put them on my apron before coming to work. Makes me sad.
I tend to notice things like pins on people, mostly thanks to Office Space (I’m pretty clueless otherwise), but I have *never* see anyone at Starbucks here with them. I just consider it an accomplishment if they get my drink right (oh yes, didn’t you know a doppio espresso is apparently difficult? sigh)
I am mega jealous about the coffee master 2009 pin. Mega.
Melody,
I am so happy that you visited Lindsey. She is sorely missed at 101. I also have some good Starbucks flair that I will bring in for you to see. Vintage 1997. 🙂
There was a blog on the partner section of MSI on 11/9 about a new recognition website. (http://www.sbuxrecognition.com)
They discussed anniversary pins, which made me think: “I should comment about this on Melody’s blog!”
Melody-
This post is so much fun! I love the pictures of all this pins! It is cool to see all the different pins we can work for, as well as how they change. You have got to get some pictures of Hallie’s vintage flair! Way to go Hallie, never letting us down! 🙂 She even has a 6 digit partner number. That means ancient you know. Oh how I miss 101!
Keep up the blog Melody, It is appreciated!
Melody,
I am really enjoying the few moments I can steal with your blog. It is intriguing to hear and see your perspective on this company I really love working for. Most of the time, in the stores, we get tunnel vision and don’t consider all that can make an experience magic. I am learning things from you! Awesome.
-Nathaniel
I have that signature electronically if you need it…
Wow, I can’t believe that I never noticed these pins in all my visits to Starbucks! Thanks for sharing this dimension of Starbucks culture.
I found myself wondering about what these pins all mean, e.g., for what accomplishments are they awarded, and am grateful for Camspi’s comment pointing to the recognition program page.
I recently visited Disney World, and became enamored with the array of pins they use their to both recognize employees (who, of course, they call “cast members”) and customers (who they call “guests”). It got me to thinking about the shared passion for “experience” at Starbucks and Disney … and I wonder if Starbucks will start handing out pins to customers (and whether they will start trading them). Now that Starbucks has some iPhone apps, perhaps they will partner with FourSquare (http://foursquare.com) or Gowalla (http://gowalla.com) to enable customers to win / trade virtual badges or pins.
FWIW, I wrote about some of the Disney pins in a blog post: http://gumption.typepad.com/blog/2009/10/pins-positivity-and-practices-hybrid-design-at-disney-world.html
I’d like to point out, Melody, that since the new rewards program incorporates the free syrups and soy as well as the free beverages after fifteen purchases, most customers (practically all of the the espresso-bar-beverage-drinking regulars) will be saving more than 10%. It is actually better than the Gold Card, no matter what Steve wants to think.
to ‘Mr Who’: this doesn’t seem the place for your comment but since it’s here, I will respond. The new ‘rewards’ program is defintely not better than the gold card for those of us who had the gold card…..and, obviously, spent a significant amount at Starbucks. (and all those other ‘rewards’ you refer to were already available to anyone & everyone with a registered card, any registered card.)
Interesting about pins! I haven’t seen one barista wear a pin in any of the SB stores I frequent. No longer fashionable! Great post.
I love Office Space! And I always love the pins the baristas wear. If it were me, the more pins the better! I used to put buttons and pins on my name-tag when I worked at Kohl’s. There’s just something a little more fun about being able to feel even the slightest bit unique at work!
Melody, I will email you some pictures of my pins! I wonder if there are anymore “random acts of coffee passion” pins out there? I have never seen one before! You don’t have any pictures of MUG awards though…they are really interesting as Sbux changes them every so often. Take care
Starbucks flair. Who’da thunk it?
Agree with denise r., the Rewards program doesn’t hold a candle to the original Gold Card. With that, I went to the Bux nearly every day.
Great to go back to this piece Melody! I must have totally missed it.
Wow just realized I did read it as per my first comment and I still say I do not see partners wearing their pins. Very curious why not?
A lot of the partners don’t care about earning the pins, or wearing them when they do get them. They get lost, etc. So most partners only have 1 or 2. Occasionally someone will go out of their way to earn as many as they can, and those are the people that have tons and tons, because they take care to save each one. I notice maybe 1 or 2 partners at each store are pin-collectors. More often than not, the people with all the pins are shift supervisors and coffee masters.