Why Costco Shouldn't Have An In-Store Coffee Bar, According To Reddit

Costco has everything, from all the grocery staples you can think of, to a food court, and even a gas station. However, one thing the store doesn't have is a dedicated coffee bar and, according to some Redditors, it should stay that way. The Costco forum on Reddit has long been a gathering place for Costco shoppers to discuss everything involving the giant wholesale grocer, including the recent Kirkland Vodka scandal and the change in flavor of the store's classic rotisserie chicken. However, when one poster asked the forum if anyone else thought Costco should include a coffee shop in its stores, the answer was overwhelmingly negative.

This may seem surprising because, for many, shopping and lattes go together like peanut butter and jelly (or Starbucks and Target). However, Costco shoppers — at least the ones on Reddit — thought that lattes and Costco would not go together well at all. The reasoning has to do with all those to-go cups.

The main reason that many Redditors objected to the idea seems to be that they believe a decent percentage of Costco shoppers wouldn't throw their used coffee cups away after they were done with them. As one commenter explained, "People can't even throw their sample cups away two feet from a garbage can. Do we really think they're responsible enough to throw away their latte cups if they finish and the trash can is more than one foot away?"

Many commenters agreed and predicted that there would be empty coffee cups all over the shelves of the store if Costco sold coffee. However, others were quick with solutions with one commenter noting that the store could "Sell coffee, but only using reusable mugs." With this plan, shoppers would be less likely to leave cups on the shelves if they had to bring their own nice mugs or thermoses with them to fill up on coffee. However, the idea seems a little farfetched considering that Costco already uses plastic cups for soda and latte freezes, so it is unlikely that the brand would suddenly impose a disposable cup ban in the store.

Besides the idea that the store would be covered in used coffee cups, another popular reason against the Costco coffee bar is that there are other more important changes shoppers want to see in the store first. In fact, the Redditor Costco wishlist seems to include agenda items like getting the "pizza combo back" and "onions for the hotdogs" both ranking well above a possible coffee bar. Another commenter seemed to not understand the appeal of shopping with a coffee and asked, "Why do you need a latte when you can walk around with a hot dog?" Touché.

Furthermore, while there is a chance that diced onions for Costco hotdogs are making a comeback according to Today, the wholesaler has never implied that it plans to open a coffee bar in any of its stores. So, if you (understandably) want to walk around Costco with a giant iced latte, for now, you will just have to settle for picking it up on the way or making it yourself at home. If you do want to make your coffee at home, Costco has you covered with that too with their Kirkland brand coffee, which some people believe is roasted by none other than Starbucks.