Starbucks Faces Resistance in Taos: Arson, Local Backlash, and Community Division
In the picturesque mountain town of Taos, New Mexico, a developer is making a third attempt to establish the town’s first Starbucks drive-through cafe after two arson attacks targeted the construction site. The town, known for its rich history of revolts and opposition to national chains, has seen mixed reactions from its 6,500 residents.
Locals quickly dubbed the would-be coffee shop “Charbucks.” In response to the attacks, the Albuquerque-based building contractor has installed video cameras, and a security guard now sleeps at the site in a camouflage trailer.
A divided community
Less than a mile from the controversial site, patrons of one of Taos’ oldest independent coffee shops, the World Cup, remain tight-lipped about the attacks.
“We don’t know who did it, but we loved it,” said Todd Lazar, a holistic healer, while chatting with regulars outside the World Cup, located just off Taos’ central plaza. This sentiment echoes the criticism Starbucks has faced globally for allegedly clashing with local cultures and siphoning money from communities. The coffee giant operates or licenses around 39,500 cafes worldwide.
Stickers on local businesses feature the Starbucks mermaid logo engulfed in flames, with the mermaid’s face replaced by La Calavera Catrina, a skull character associated with Mexico’s Day of the Dead.
Historic resistance to outside forces
The first fire in August 2023 saw the partially burned structure marked with the word “NO” preceded by an expletive. This act of defiance is part of a long history of local resistance, from the 1680 Indigenous Pueblo Revolt against Spanish settlers to the 1847 Taos Revolt against US occupation.
“Taos is a dynamic and volatile contact zone between different groups, imperial powers, and ecotones,” said Sylvia Rodriguez, emerita professor of anthropology at the University of New Mexico, who has studied her hometown for decades.
Economic and social inequities
Situated 7,000 feet above sea level in northern New Mexico’s high mountain desert, Taos is renowned for its UNESCO World Heritage Site Native American settlement, vibrant art scene, and challenging ski runs. However, deep social inequalities persist among Indigenous, Hispano (descendants of colonial settlers), and other communities, with the highest property crime rate in New Mexico.
Residents like Lazar complain that the influx of remote workers during and after the pandemic is driving demand for national chains, exacerbating housing shortages common in US West resort towns.
Taos’ town council supports the Starbucks project for the employment and tax revenue it promises, according to Christopher Larsen, the town’s economic development director.
Community concerns and economic realities
“People are showing up saying ‘I’d love to work here, I can’t afford to live here,'” said Andrea Meyer, owner of the World Cup, a cash-only cafe with no Wi-Fi to encourage conversation. Few working households can afford Taos’ average home price of $460,000, with around a third of housing units vacant.
Following the second fire in October 2023, two or three national chains withdrew from Taos projects, Larsen noted. “The feeling is that Taos doesn’t want corporate America,” he said.
Starbucks spokesman Sam Jefferies emphasized that employee safety is the company’s top priority and that it will work closely with police once the store opens. No injuries have been reported from the fires.
An unprecedented situation
Based on news reports over the last three decades, Taos appears to be the only place globally where a future Starbucks cafe has been burned to the ground.
Neither contractor Hart Construction nor Arizona-based developer Clint Jameson, who plans to lease the property to Starbucks, responded to requests for comment.
The town and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) have offered a $30,000 reward for information on the fires. Police believe they know the suspect or suspects but lack evidence to place them at the scene during the blazes. Taos Police Chief John Wentz declined to comment, while ATF spokesman Cody Monday said the agency continues to follow leads.
A call for dialogue
At the Coffee Apothecary, owner Pablo Flores confirmed the demand for Starbucks-like drinks but lamented the destruction of national chains. He viewed the fires as a symptom of the broader breakdown in dialogue amid political polarization.
“Taos is changing and if you don’t like the way it’s changing, do not support that business,” said Flores, whose family has lived in Taos for generations. “Don’t burn it down, that’s not cool.”