Starbucks Is Trying to Make Its Baristas Look Like Hipsters
Your favorite Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) barista might be showing off a new look next time you order that latte -- sporting dark-wash jeans, a tone-on-tone plaid shirt and fedora.
The coffee chain announced a new North American dress code Monday that invites more than just black, white and khaki options. It's extending shirt colors to gray, navy, dark denim and brown, plus patterns. Its partners can also wear shorts, skirts, dresses and pants, and go for any hair color they desire, so long as it meets food safety standards. The company had previously barred its employees from dyeing their hair unnatural colors, i.e. pink and purple, reports Fortune.
The dress code is intended to be more reflective of what its baristas wear outside of work. "This new dress code is what partners have in their closets," Starbucks store manager Mario Leon said in a press release. "It just makes it so much easier. It just makes so much sense." Leon's 47th and Broadway Manhattan, New York location had already implemented the change in September.
A full look at the new wardrobe is available here. It clearly invokes more of a hipster, average Joe coffee shop feel, one the chain could emulate to broaden its fast casual, basic appeal. It also builds on a growing trend of individual expression in the workplace.
The company has been making a series of changes meant to benefit employees, notably through its college achievement plan and more recently its wage increase announcement set to go into effect in October. The caveat of the upcoming pay increase is that there won't be another in January, reports BuzzFeed.
The company's third-quarter earnings report reflected smaller-than-expected revenue growth for the company, prompting it to cut its sales forecast. The company's stock price has been down 3.7 percent for the year.
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