Starbucks axes 61 stores and 685 jobs, by Daniel Emerson - The Sydney Morning Herald - 29th July 2008

About 685 employees of coffee mega-chain Starbucks will lose their jobs in five days after the company this afternoon announced it would close 61 of its 84 Australian stores.

NSW employees were told the news at a meeting at the Novotel Hotel in Darling Harbour at 4pm.

After August 3, only Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane will have Starbucks outlets.

Speculation of widespread closures was sparked when every Australian store was ordered to close at 2pm so all staff could attend 28 meetings around the country but they were not given prior indication of the move.

Starbucks announced in a statement embargoed until 5pm today that the decision to close 61 "underperforming" locations was made "to concentrate its attention and resources on profitable growth, operational efficiencies and an enhanced experience for customers and partners [employees] globally".

Starbucks calls its employees "partners".

Starbucks Asia Pacific president John Culver would not reveal which stores would close, saying he wanted employees to be told first.

"Obviously a decision like this is a very difficult decision for any company to make and really more so from a Starbucks perspective because of the impact that we have on our people," he said.

"We wanted to make sure we handled these announcements the right way and put our people first."

The locations of the closures will be made public on July 31 when they will be posted on the chain's Australian website.

Mr Culver said the company had set up an "employee assistance line" offering counselling to its "partners" and redundancy packages would be offered.

Casual staff would also be offered redundancy.

He refused to say why the employees were give such short notice of the massive closures.

"As part of the decision all partners, whether they have worked for the company for week or multiple years, will be eligible for a redundancy package," Mr Culver said.

"Depending on length of service and position, it ranges anywhere from a maximum of 20 weeks of redundancy pay that we will be paying. All partners at a minimum will receive at least a week's notice-period pay as well as two weeks' severance pay.

"This is above and beyond what we are legally required to do but we feel it's the right decision to support our partners and show the value we place on them as people."

Mr Culver said about 685 employees would lose their jobs but he would not reveal what proportion of them were full time and casual.

Media Man Australia Profiles

Cafes

Packer's 'white elephant' leased, By Justin Vallejo - The Daily Telegraph - 27th June 2008

Bondi's most famous white elephant has sat vacant beneath James Packer's beachside palazzo for the past six years.

Now the ground floor of Packer's former bachelor pad is to be converted into a Jurlique "wellness sanctuary".

The Campbell Parade block will house the pursuit of "beauty and connecting oneself to the earth" rather than dirty nappies.

The space had been boarded up since iconic retailer Jones The Grocer shut up shop in 2002, and was eventually placed into voluntary administration with $1 million in debts.

The site was supposed to have provided a rental income of more than $3000 a week for Packer, with the grocery shop paying $148,000 a year for panoramic views of Bondi Beach.

International coffee chain Starbucks almost took up residence in 2003 but pulled out after residents' protests - an American chain, puh-lease.

Gelateria & Pizzeria owner George Pompei was also keen but couldn't get permission for outdoor seating.

Packer settled on Jurlique, a cosmetics company in which his CPH Investment Corp paid $25 million in 2002 for a 25 per cent share.

Contractors have already begun converting the site, scheduled to open in July - and it's no dodgy kebab shop operation, either.

According to chief executive Eli Halliwell, Jurlique "is passion" and a chance to connect with the "living energy" of their skincare products.

"Beauty is sustainable connections to the earth," her website says.

Media Man Australia Profiles

Cafes and Coffee

Bondi Beach

Bondi Beach Cafes

We have recently had the pleasure of dining at some of Bondi Beaches greatest cafes including:

Bondi Trattoria, Lamrock Cafe, Cafe Lorenzini, The Sun Cafe, Starfish Cafe and Brave Cafe Restaurant.

Media Man Australia Profiles

Cafes

Bondi Beach


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Greg Tingle
Director
Media Man Australia
e: greg@mediaman.com.au
w: www.mediaman.com.au

Cafe's in Sydney's eastern suburbs

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Best Regards
Greg Tingle
Director
Media Man Australia
e: greg@mediaman.com.au
w: www.mediaman.com.au

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Best Regards
Greg Tingle
Director
Media Man Australia
e: greg@mediaman.com.au
w: www.mediaman.com.au

Cafes & Coffee Media Update

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Director
Media Man Australia
e: greg@mediaman.com.au
w: www.mediaman.com.au

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