If you want to hang out or go to the bathroom at Starbucks, you’ll have to buy something.
Starbucks said Monday it was reversing a policy that invited everyone into its stores. A new code of conduct, which will be posted in all company-owned North American stores, also prohibits discrimination or harassment, outdoor drinking, smoking, vaping, drug use and panhandling.
Starbucks spokeswoman Jaci Anderson said the new rules are designed to help prioritize paying customers. Anderson said most other retailers already have similar rules.
“We want everyone to feel welcome and comfortable in our stores,” Anderson said. “By setting clear expectations for behavior and use of our spaces, we can create a better environment for everyone.”
The code of conduct warns that violators will be asked to leave and says the store can call the police if necessary. Starbucks said employees would receive training on how to enforce the new policy.
The new rules reverse an open-door policy implemented in 2018, after two Black men were arrested at a Philadelphia Starbucks where they had gone to a business meeting. The individual store had a policy of asking non-paying customers to leave, and the men had not purchased anything. But the arrest, which was caught on video, was a huge embarrassment for the company.
At the time, Starbucks President Howard Schultz said he didn’t want people to feel “less than” if they were denied access.
“We don’t want to become a public bathroom, but we will make the right decision 100 percent of the time and give the key to the people,” Schultz said.
However, since then, employees and customers have fought back against unruly and even dangerous behavior in stores. In 2022, Starbucks closed 16 stores nationwide, including six in Los Angeles and six in its hometown of Seattle, over repeated safety issues, including drug use and other disruptive behavior that threatened staff.
