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"Globalization in a Grande Cup": Exploring the Economic and Cultural Intricacies Between Starbucks and Costa Rica Caroline Carpenter
T
he neon green encircled mermaid now acts a beacon to coffee drinkers everywhere. Since its origin, Starbucks has worked to create its own branding. In every frappuccino you are also consuming the image by which the company has presented itself for years. Starbucks markets itself as more than simply a coffee company; it markets itself as a lifestyle, crafted like a Iced Lightly Sweet Chai Latte to appear as high-end yet accessible, artsy, humanitarian, and revolutionary.1 Knowing that Starbucks is marketing a lifestyle through its coffee, one must be careful about the cultural implications that are also purchased. Starbucks is not ashamed to promote its own morality when it comes to its work in countries in which the coffee is grown. However, when a closer lens is put on the company and its dealings, it can be seen that the impact that its dealings have on both the origin country and the store consumers can be detrimental. Starbucks has quite the price to pay when it comes to perpetuating economic disparities between the consumers of its origin countries as and those of its own United States’ stores. This consequence also contributes to the perpetuation of the “white savior” mentality that Starbucks consciously (however “unconscious” they may claim) incorporates into its superstructure. In Marxist theory, the capitalistic mode of production consists of two parts: the substructure and the superstructure. The substructure is made up of the means and interactions of production. In the realm of Starbucks, the would consist of coffee plantations in origin countries, farmer support centers, and mechanisms of exportation to Starbucks stores. The superstructure consists of all noneconomic aspects of a society such as art, religion, education, and culture. In Starbucks’ case, this can be described by the company’s commodified ethnicity (Italian names for orders, Costa Rican Arabica beans, etc.). Starbucks takes part in what
1 In his book Everything but the Coffee: Learning about America from Starbucks, author and professor Bryant Simon summarized this factor of the company’s identity: “Starbucks speaks to a deeply felt American need for predictability and class standing, community and authenticity, revealing that Starbucks’ appeal lies not in the product it sells but in the easily consumed identity it offers.”
North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
neo-Marxists would refer to as lat(t)e capitalism, which means that the company’s ultimate goal, of course, would be to generate capital. Part of Starbucks’ superstructure has been inherent to the company goals and creation, but many aspects of what they incorporate into company culture has been in reaction to the consumeristic desire for multiculturality in their product. There is a distinct experience that Starbucks must create to ensure customer satisfaction. This is an experience that goes far beyond a diligent barista. Now that consumers have a growing concern over the origin of its products, consumers are also seeing the effects of export-dependent economies such as Costa Rica. Kim Feller wrote in her book Wrestling with Starbucks: Conscience, Capital, and Cappuccino, “It’s a sad consequence of the historic north-south coffee relationship that many farmers once had no idea what kind of coffee their bean produced.” Since the Costa Rican coffee industry is so dependent on exportation, few farmers have actually tasted what kind of coffee their beans produce. The beans that are left within origin countries are often the third tier of quality coffee. When visiting Doka Coffee Estate in Sabanilla, Alajuela, Costa Rica, I took the opportunity to go on one of the marketed tours. The tours touted both the history of the specific plantation, Costa Rican coffee history, as well as the intricate coffee-making process utilized every day. At one stop on the tour the guide sat in front of the group three different sacks, overflowing with coffee beans. The first sack of beans, which were of perfect shape and a beautiful pre-roasted white, and without a shred of a shell, would be sent, we were informed, to private purchasers around the globe (“like beans could also be purchased in our gift shop,” conveniently mentioned our tour guide). The next set of beans was very similar to the first, but shells were scattered about the sack and the pale color was not as uniform. When asked where we thought this sack of beans would be sent to, the group responded with an obvious “to local Costa Ricans.” Our guide shook his head knowingly and told us, “Those, mis amigos, are what fill your Starbucks cups.” We all immediately turned our eyes to the last bag of coffee beans. There was a huge difference in coloration as well as remnants of shells scattered throughout the bag. These were the beans that filled Costa Rican coffee mugs. These beans
