Bearista Tales

Penguin Bearista

66th Edition in the Bearista Bear Collection

Dressed up as a penguin for the winter, he also wears a green stocking cap and a scarf with tassels. Penguin Bearista was an Asian release. Thanks Jen!

Thrive '05 Bearista

Thrive '05 Bearista, Employee-Only

This special edition Bearista was given away at the 2005 leadership conference to promote Starbucks' employee wellness program. He is dressed as a bicyclist - with a helmet, jersey, bike shorts and shoes. His jersey as a Starbucks logo on the front and says "Thrive '05" on the back. Thanks Jen for sending in the picture!

Malaysia Bearista (2007)

Destination Series, 8th Edition, Bearista Bear Collection

Wears a white polo shirt, khaki pants, and the traditional Starbucks green apron with "Malaysia" written on the front.

How many Starbucks are there near you?

"In Times Square, there's one Starbucks for every .04 sq miles and for every 1,442 people"

Of course, that's the number of people who actually live in Times Square, not the number of people who pass through there each day. A Starbucks every .04 sq miles brings to mind the old Onion headline: "New Starbucks opens in restroom of existing Starbucks".

The Miami area is above the national average in Starbucks saturation, with a Starbucks every 1.43 sq miles and one for every 13,119 people.

What about your neighborhood? Check the Starbucks saturation of your area at Foodio54.com.

(via Starbucks Gossip)

Year of the Dog Bearista

48th Edition in the Bearista Bear Collection

In addition to his dog costume, the Year of the Dog Bearista wears a collar with the Chinese character "Dog" on it. He also carries a Chinese lantern with the same character on it.

Like the other Chinese New Year bearistas, he was released only in Asia. (Thanks again to Jen for the photo!)

Snowy Day Girl Bearista 2005

43rd  Edition in the Bearista Bear Collection

Snowy Day Girl is dressed in red velvet robe on top, and, underneath  a white sheer dress with green ribbon across her waist. She's carrying a little white bear. Snowy Day Bearistas were released with two different paw tags -- this one is the red paw tag version. This bearista was also released in a magnet version.

Thanks again to Jen for supplying the pic!

Is Starbucks hurt by lack of merchandise focus?

Earlier this year John Moore and Paul Williams volleyed back and forth on their blogs about how Starbucks can regain its brand momentum. One of the back-and-forths stated that Starbucks should refocus on coffee-related merchandise only. Reason? Non-coffee merchandise sold so well, Starbucks dialed back the coffee merchandise and started to lose its identify.

... Just because Starbucks can sell Bearista Bears, doesn’t mean the company should. Same goes for Finger Puppets, Books, and Music. There is a cost to everything Starbucks sells. The selling of Bearista Bears and Finger Puppets probably does more damage to the soul of the Starbucks brand more than does selling Books and CDs.

(From Brand Autopsy: Solving Starbucks Problems)

Bearistas are certainly not coffee related items. But as bearista collectors, we doubt we'd agree that they damage the Starbucks brand. For us, they're a part of the Starbucks brand now -- bringing the Starbucks brand (and the Starbucks life) home. What do you think?

Customized Starbucks Cards

Image from Starbucks.com

You may have seen the voucher boxes lurking around your local Starbucks -- to give or buy a customized Starbucks card. You don't need a voucher though -- you can go directly to their site and customize a card for yourself. It costs $4 for the customization, but if you or someone you know carries their Starbucks card in your wallet (and keeps reloading) like we do, it could be a fun thing.

The customization is pretty cool -- a lot of options -- and on two of the cards you can specify exactly what you're drinking. Not quite as flexible as it might be (for example, can't enter 7 pumps of syrup) but pretty comprehensive to cover most choices people actually drink. Unless you like multiple syrups or only a half shot of espresso. Then you're out of luck.

On our card, the drink we imagine the Holiday Bearistas would enjoy most -- Tall With Whip Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha. And maybe someday they'll introduce a card with a bearista on it.

Mr. Claus Bearista

36th Edition in the Bearista Bear Collection

Released in 2004. Wears a dark red robe and cap trimmed in white faux fur. (Photo contributed by Jen)

Hong Kong Bearista

Destination Series, 15th Edition, Bearista Bear Collection

Wears a white polo shirt, khaki pants, and the traditional Starbucks green apron with "Hong Kong" written on the front.

Hong Kong Bearista is our first reader-contributed Bearista! Thanks Jen! Keep 'em coming guys!