Map Shows All U.S. Starbucks

From Huff Po: As of September 8, there were 12,937 Starbucks stores in the United States. That's more than the number of Pizza Huts, Burger Kings or Dunkin' Donuts, but less than the number of Subways or McDonald's. It's more than the number of golden-crowned sifakas in Madagascar, but less than the number of people in Rock Springs, Wyoming. So what does it really mean?

University of Washington PhD candidate Jim Davenport decided to find out. He posted the results of his inquiry on his data blog If We Assume Thursday, complete with a few beautiful graphics. The most striking was a map of the lower 48 states with all the stand-alone Starbucks locations plotted in green

The map doesn't include locations that are within other businesses, like grocery stores, so it's not 100 percent complete. But Davenport discovered that it's impossible to get more than about 170 miles away from a standalone Starbucks location at any point in the U.S. That's not quite as crazy as McDonald's, which is never more than 115 miles away, but it's still insane.

Even more amazingly, he found than 80 percent of the 311 million people living in the U.S. live within 20 miles of a Starbucks. And almost 50 percent lives within five miles of a Starbucks. No wonder the coffee chain is looking for far-flung, controversial spots to open new stores!

via www.huffingtonpost.com

Comments

[photoslave]

There's three within one shopping plaza where I live. There is a strip that includes Meijer, PetCo, and Target, plus a bunch of restaurants, medical offices, and a couple stand alone stores. In that single 1/4 mile block, there is one stand alone Starbucks, one in Meijer, and one in Target. And not even a mile down the road, there is a Barnes and Noble with one inside. The town I live in isn't even very big, but it is a tourist hot spot during certain times.

[maya marie]

I'm actually about an hour away from the nearest starbucks. there's only about 6 in the entire state of west virgina or something like that.

[The Last Archimedean]

I refuse to patronize Starbucks. I'm still mad at Schultz for helping steal the Sonics from seattle.

And yes, I'd love to be able to waterboard Bennett and Stern until I have their signatures on an agreement moving them back to Seattle immediately.

[Skittles]

There are about six within 6 miles of my house. Including two shopping centres with one full store, and a kiosk in another bussiness not 20 yards away.

[perky]

I was visiting a friend a we went to get a coffee at the Starbucks in her local Target. We get inside, but they inform us they were having electrical issues and could not make coffee. No problem, we crossed the parking lot and went to the Starbucks in the plaza on the other side of the parking lot. It was surreal, like that scene for Shrek II

[BookAce]

I think the nearest Starbucks to me is about 50 miles (a 1-hour drive on our highway.) I'd never make the drive just to go there, but maybe I'll stop in once or twice a year if I'm in town with friends. The Borders I worked at was in the same town with the SB. One time, during liquidation, the liquidator actually went and bought us all coffee. xD

[photoslave]

Turns out there's actually two more locations just a few miles down the road from the others. I live in a town of just over 35,000. Six Starbucks stores in less than 20 square miles.

[Squirrel bagger]

The oddest thing to me is that the graph makes it look like there are more east coast locations. Them starting in Seattle you'd think it would be the other way around?

[Skittles]

@Squirrel Bagger I believe there are more larger cities on the east coast than on the west coast, so there is more money to be made.

[Book Baby]

Uh, doesn't it look like some of these are in CANADA?

[Nocturnesthesia]

One just opened right next door to my house. Now I can't get down the sidewalk because it's clogged up by snobby, iPad-toting rich kids discussing Foucault and sipping their shitty $6 coffee.

[Jenny]

That 12,937 will soon be 12,938 since they just bought out one of the oldest gas stations in my area to put one in its place.