I’m sure by now you’ve all heard about how Starbucks is testing out a company rebrand. Unlike what I consider to be a corporate rebrand, the company is actually rebranding each store individually to make them appear to be “hometown” coffee shops rather than the international corporate giant shops that they now are.

Of course, the new shops will offer some differences other than new names: alcohol, live music, poetry readings, and maybe even a few new manual espresso machines. Already, one store has opened under the name “15th Avenue Coffee and Tea” in Seattle.

Of course, there’s been a lot of talk flying around about this. Some people hate it, others love it. Some say it’s genius, others say it’s desperate. My personal opinion? It’s deceitful.

I personally love to visit Downtown Knoxville’s Remedy Coffee because it truly is a neighborhood shop, and I know the money I spend on my chai latte isn’t going into some multi-billion dollar corporate bank account. (In fact, if you visit Remedy – their profits go to charity). However, if a Knoxville version of 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea happens to open, the money spent there is still getting sent straight into Starbucks’ corporate account…even if not all of its customers know it.

I’ve always been one to try and support “the little guy”…so I don’t want Starbucks posing as such in my city. If I go to Starbucks, I want to know it’s a Starbucks.

What do you think?