However you feel about the ubiquitous coffee shop, it's hard to not experience an "aww" moment while watching Starbucks' new global brand campaign, "Meet Me at Starbucks." The five-minute video documents people all the way from Seattle to Amsterdam and Tokyo to Mumbai meeting up at a local Starbucks for whatever reason, whether it's to come together to meet friends, family, dates, bosses, students, and even strangers. The ad is a little unconventional in the sense that it already assumes the people watching hang out and meet at Starbucks, and causes the viewer to remember the meet-ups and hang-outs they've experienced there as well. (I would know, I spent three years of high school doing my homework almost every single day at my local Starbucks in my hometown of Seattle.)
Some haters would argue that Starbucks is using the evils of capitalism and exploitation to appeal to our nostalgia and our memories of community and friendship. While there is something to be said for that argument, there's also something to be said for safe, accessible, public spaces where people can escape whatever is happening in the confines of their homes, jobs, or the lack thereof and be a part of a community filled with diversity in experience and background. When you pay $5 dollars for that soy iced chai, you're also paying for the comfort of a furnished space, free WiFi, and in some cases even live music or special events.
Check out this interactive film that was shot in 28 countries in 24 hours.
