Starbucks Economy Update

A while back I talked about Starbucks being the proverbial canary in a coal mine with respect to the health of our economy.  To me it seemed the most obvious example of conspicuous consumption that represented our debt driven economy, and the place where newly stingy Americans would cut back drastically.

Well it turns out I was onto something.  Check out this graphical illustration of Starbucks store closures around the country from just the last year:

While this is obviously a sign of our economy turning to a more sustainable path, where consumers occasionally indulge in an expensive coffee drink rather than making it a multiple times per day routine funded by credit cards via home equity loans, it's also a sign that a lot of people on the bottom wrung of the economic ladder are being hurt.

Remember your favorite barista next time you stress about your own job.  Chances are you probably make more than them and don't have to worry about being laid off nearly as much.

Hat tip to Ian Ritter via 538.