| | Peach Report reports that Starbucks has become the first major operator to sign itself up to the idea of offering 'suspended' coffees to those in need.
Suspended coffees - buying a drink alongside your own to be ‘banked’ by the shop who then passes it on to someone who needs it, like a homeless man or woman - have been popular in the US for a while, though the idea is thought to have started in Europe. The concept has been gaining plenty of traction on social media like Twitter and Facebook, via heartwarming stories of grateful beneficiaries of the donations.
Now the idea has been officially picked up by Starbucks in the UK, though the coffee will be more indirectly spread to those in need. In a Facebook post on the subject, it told followers: "We echo your passion to help those in need, especially in the recent cold spell. When you pay for a suspended coffee, we’ll give coffee to that value to our longstanding charity partner Oasis, which will then distribute the coffee to its community hubs across the UK, and we’ll match the value of each suspended coffee in a cash donation to Oasis. This will help provide warmth and comfort to those in need." Starbucks says it will be rolling the operational side of the concept out to its UK stores soon. |