New Inclusive Designs for Starbucks

I love quiet time to relax and enjoy a nice hot cup of tea. I find myself choosing to go through a drive thru as the cafe’s, especially the Starbucks in my community are small and noisy.

A new Starbucks store has opened in Washington D.C.’s Union Market. The new store design is setting an example for more accessible and inclusive spaces in the U.S.

Order-status-boards, employees who communicate through sign language, and shelves that provide room for wheelchairs and service dogs, are some of the many adjustments made to the new inclusive spaces’ framework that will guide construction and renovations of Starbucks stores going forward.

Sara Twilling, president of Starbucks North America, said “Designing for disabilities is just good design for everybody.”  Sara added that designing a more accessible café took about two years and that the company solicited input from Starbucks baristas.

The store lighting is changed to minimize glare, shadows and backlighting that can make it more difficult to see.  Insulation has been improved, so stores aren’t so noisy. Starbucks designed the overall floorplan of the Union Market store with power doors, to be free of obstacles and to have open sightlines.

All future company-owned stores will follow a similar framework. Starbucks plans to open more than 600 new stores this year.  Let’s hope a few of the new stores with the new design will open in your area!