A blogger sparked online buzz for sharing his experience of being called by the wrong name on his coffee cup at popular coffee shop.
JP Abecilla on Monday, June 2, posted a lengthy story about how a Starbucks branch mistakenly called him with wrong names, despite him being an “almost” loyal customer.
The blogger, who tagged his post with a “feeling disappointed” status, shared that a barista wrote the wrong name in his cup more than once.
Starbucks is known for writing customers’ names on their cups with a marker to call them when their order is ready for pickup.
“When he set the cup down, I saw it read ‘Jade.’ I corrected him, saying it should be ‘JP.’ No apology, he crumpled the cup and grabbed a new one. I even spelled out the initials: It’s JP, J for Juliet and P for Papa, JP,” the blogger wrote.
“After that, I handed over a P1,000 bill for the payment. He asked if I had a smaller bill. I didn’t, but I offered to get the change later since I’d be staying there anyway. He ‘borrowed’ my receipt (perhaps as a reminder) but ended up giving me the change right then. And yet, he still kept the receipt with him,” JP added.
“I waited for my order. A few minutes passed, and I heard a barista call out in an unpleasant tone: ‘Café Americano for JC!’ I didn’t react. It wasn’t my name. I assumed someone else had a similar order,” he continued.
“But after several more minutes and the addition of a Cinnamon Danish to the tray, I started to wonder. Still, ‘JC’ was being called, repeatedly and coldly, with no one stepping up. That’s when I realized: they meant me,” the blogger said.
He shared that he did not grab his order and left the store, “frustrated and disappointed.”
JC ended his post by saying, “Sorry, #Starbucks. Today, you lost a customer.”
In the comments section, the blogger said that he transferred to Bo’s Coffee after his experience.
His post was reposted by a Facebook page, further earning viral status.
JP got called out for “overreacting,” with many sharing their own similar experiences of Starbucks baristas getting their names wrong.
“No coffee shop ever gets my name ‘KIRSTY’ spelled correctly. It’s either Kristy, Cristy, Kirsy. But that’s fine, no big deal. I came to eat and drink, not to have my name pronounced or spelled correctly,” a Facebook user said.
“They even wrote my name as ‘Knel’ instead of ‘Elle,’ maingay din kasi talaga sa SB [Starbucks], so they probably had a hard time hearing our names correctly. As long as our order is right, I don’t think it’s something we need to make a big deal out of, ‘di ba?” another said.
“Maliit na bagay. I used to order at Starbucks a lot, and whenever they asked for my name, they almost always got it wrong. I’ve gotten everything from ‘Church’ to ‘George,'” another wrote.
“Sabi ng partner ko, dati daw, Starbucks baristas sometimes misspell names on purpose because it went viral once and made for good social media content. Not sure if that’s actually true, though!” the online user added.
Some argued that if JP were really a “loyal” customer, he would have built a “relationship” with the barista and staff.
“If you are indeed a regular, you would have a great personal relationship sa mga barista and staff. Kahit nga ‘di na super personal pero if kilala ka nila, pagpasok mo pa lang, mag-hi na sa’yo, first name basis pa, tapos sabay tanong, ‘yung usual po ba? Ganeeern!” a Facebook user wrote.
thers claimed that misspelling names is part of the brand’s “strategy.”
“If you were really a loyal customer, you should’ve known that they usually misspell names and it happens to all their branches worldwide. Bumili ka na lang ng palamig para ‘di ka na ma-stress,” a Facebook user said.
“My Marketing professor once said Starbucks misspells names on purpose as a strategy. Kaya simula noon, kapag ‘yung name ko sinusulat as ‘Papel,’ ‘Fael,’ or ‘Babel,’ made each visit oddly fun, not insulting. [It] make always wonder what they will write next and the coffee is so good,” another said.
In 2014, an unnamed assistant manager at Starbucks revealed to Cosmopolitan that her manager “admitted most Starbucks employees use it as a marketing tool.”
“Most people aren’t going to post a photo to social media of a cup with their name spelled right. I just use it as a way to be funny, but now I get why people use it as a way to promote the business,” the unnamed Starbucks worker said.
Meanwhile, a Starbucks spokesperson has previously denied that the company deliberately misspells customers’ names.
“We’ve never asked or directed any of our partners to misspell names of our customers for any reason,” the spokesperson previously told BuzzFeed News.
Starbucks considers itself a premier roaster and retailer of specialty coffee worldwide. It prides itself on ethically sourcing and roasting high-quality arabica coffee to be crafted in different forms.
