In the Shadow of Starbucks

Despite being a business that is primarily engaged in coffee products and foodservice, The Woods Coffee Company does not want to be considered as a business following in the steps that Starbucks has taken. More importantly, this coffee company does not want to make the same mistakes that the giant coffee chain has made in the past.

How it Began For the Woods
The Woods Coffee Company started business in 2002 with the opening of its first two shops in Lynden, Washington. This coffee shop became a hit with local residents in a very short time and thus became the start of the company’s road to growth and expansion. The Woods believes that the key to its success is being able to foster an overall community environment, like successful Italian coffee shops have.

A Coffee Shop That Encourages A Community Environment
Wes Herman, who owns The Woods Coffee Company, has always believed that to succeed in the coffee shop industry, the company should always promote and encourage a community environment. A community environment fosters warmth, comfort and interaction with the people who come to the shop. The company, as much as possible, would like to move away from being known as a ‘chain store’ (such as Starbucks has become), but rather than a comfortable corner store.

With this, The Woods Coffee Company has successfully established nine coffee shops that promote community environments. Because of the company’s commitment to the community that it is involved in, each coffee shop has a different style from the other. For instance, its newest coffee shop in Lynden (only one of three shops within the area) is located on the ground floor of a windmill that is 53-feet long. This location has been strategically agreed upon in order for the shop to adapt to the Dutch like theme community of downtown Lynden. The company’s two other coffee shops in Birch Bay and Ferndale, feature fireplaces – inside-outside, as well as environmentally friendly furniture that is made from locally grown wood.

In another of the company’s coffee shops in Bellingham, the management has decided to construct a community center along with the coffee shop. This particular shop has been the company’s most profitable endeavor and has the most community interaction as well. The Woods participates in the community’s activities through its promotion of sustainability. For instance, the coffee shop is the only one in the area that uses clear cups and paper cups. It even gives one free Viking blend coffee to Washington University students who bring in their own mugs every “Western Wednesdays.”

The Woods Coffee Company bases its shop design according to the kind of identity a community has. Operating the shops this way invites more people to come to the stores, have a leisurely coffee experience and not feel like rushing to do the next activity that needs to be done.

The Woods in Succeeding Years
According to Herman, Starbucks has been focusing its efforts on becoming a coffee shop that will also foster a community environment. He also added that the coffee chain has been studying The Woods’ coffee shops in an effort to create a similar feel in its own shops.

Although Starbucks was able to achieve that with its first few stores, the coffee chain lost that quality over the years, along with its expansion. The Woods does not plan on heading that way however. Herman maintains that his company will always have a warm and cozy environment in its shops, even if it continues to grow and expand. Currently, the company has plans of expanding its scope and put up its coffee shops further south. Currently, Herman is negotiating to put up coffee shops in the counties of Snohomish and Skagit, Washington. The Woods Coffee Company now even has a shop as far away as Nairobi, Kenya.