Whether society decides to admit it or not, most of us purchase and drink Starbucks coffee way too often without considering the coffee and products of other local shops.

Starbucks is becoming a global monopoly that is taking over this culture’s demand for coffee and adapting an aesthetic many teenagers, college students and young adults all enjoy. While this large corporation seems to be shaping the world in a wholly positive way, people can surely find more at a local shop.

Open Doors Coffeehouse, Dos Gatos Coffee Bar and Willow Tree Coffeehouse and Music Room are all local venues in Johnson City.

How are these three places alone superior to Starbucks? For starters, a local shop is usually going to provide an environment more capable of meeting local needs and forming more capable relationships with the staff, in comparison to a wide variety of Starbucks stores.

It’s important for several reasons in life not to move with the same monotonous rhythm for our entire existence, or always follow the sway of those around us. We must break the mold and try new things. Indeed, studies showcase this change-in-pace has the ability to benefit mental health and increase social capability in an astonishing way.

It is no surprise why we hear people complaining all the time about how much money they spend at Starbucks. Some think there is no other way to acquire coffee at cheaper prices. Traditionally, Starbucks coffee tends to be priced higher than most local coffee in the area. It might be better to purchase local coffee more often than Starbucks, strictly to save some extra money.

I begin to ask myself: What is Starbucks doing with all this money that people are constantly feeding them? It is without surprise that they are investing most of it into a ridiculous amount of shops, making it a lazier process for people to achieve their beverages.

If anything, supporting local coffee shops keep the market from becoming mass produced to a future point in which Starbucks could be the only possibility or choice to acquire coffee. Of course, that is a harsh reality, and certainly not the one we inhabit; however, I observe society becoming lazier and more inclined to increasingly invest in products lacking character or quality.

Local coffee shops provide a buyer with an opportunity to invest in something possibly more meaningful and memorable in comparison to unconsciously deciding to spend money toward a large monopoly like Starbucks. Simply put, support local coffee shops.