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Starbucks reopens with fresh look and cold brew

This first week of classes of the 2019-20 school year brought a new look for one of the hottest student spots on campus—Starbucks.

Janel Shoun-Smith | 615.966.7078 | 

Starbucks Renovation

Starbucks debuted a more customer-friendly design at its grand re-opening on Tuesday.

This first week of classes of the 2019-20 school year brought a new look for one of the hottest student spots on campus—Starbucks, as well as President L. Randolph Lowry himself pouring free cold brew for students after the first chapel session of the year.

Lowry at Starbucks

President L. Randolph Lowry donned a Starbucks apron Tuesday to hand out samples of cold brew.

Since it opened in 2007, the on-campus Starbucks has proven to be one of the top two on-campus choices for students’ food and beverage and one of the top producing stores in Nashville, making it an ideal choice to be one of the first spots in Nashville to sport Starbucks new look, said Wolcott Fary, general manager of Sodexo, which operates the on-campus Starbucks.

“The new design includes brighter colors, a crisper, fresher look in terms of art, lighting and counter backdrop. It looks more welcoming,” said Fary. “The new design looks less industrial and is designed to be more about the experience for the guest and the coffee itself.”

That means a new larger counter, big enough for in-store guests and those picking up coffee from the soon-to-be enabled GrubHub online ordering system.

Each Starbucks location is required by the company to do a renovation every seven years, so students can look forward to seeing the same look show up in Starbucks’ free-standing restaurants around town, Fary said.

To celebrate the re-opening of the renovated Starbucks on Tuesday, Starbucks offered free cold brew of cold brew with nitrous to the first 100 students who stopped by after chapel, and special guest Dr. Lowry was on hand to serve the cold brew samples himself.

The GrubHub online pre-order system is expected to be available in mid-September, Fary said.