The battle for coffee dominance on university campuses

If you are above the age of 18, there is a very high chance you drink coffee or have had coffee more than once. Some people don’t drink coffee, but they are few and far between. Looking at any university campus in Canada you can see there are coffee shops everywhere.

So why is this? Sure, university students are typically sleep deprived, but there is a more significant reason behind the demand driving coffee shops on campuses. It begins and ends with ‘big caffeine.’ Companies want to have a spot on campus to create lifetime consumers.

At the University of Guelph, for example, there are nine coffee shops. Nine. That number doesn’t include the small coffee ‘stands’ the school has in several buildings. Three Starbucks, four Tim Hortons, and two Second Cups. This seems somewhat excessive for a school with an undergrad population of around 18,000 students.

Apparently, it’s not that excessive as almost every single one of these locations is busy throughout an average weekday, even more-so during exams. These companies are fighting for brand awareness, and more importantly, they are looking for the benefits of a lifetime consumer. To no surprise, Starbucks is doing fairly well globally and looking at the University of Guelph makes this evident. Starbucks is winning the brand war on university campuses, and that means big business once students graduate.

Caffeine is incredibly addictive, and comparisons can be made to the likes of nicotine, sugar, or the dopamine hit you get from social media. Knowing that your product is addictive can make the reason to launch a coffee shop on campus extremely inviting. Firms that establish locations on campus know that students will be more inclined to grab a coffee if they’re feeling tired during exams.

This creates a constant cycle of grabbing a coffee for studying, classes, or a simple date. Sooner or later this exam cramming coffee habit turns into daily practice. If you didn’t drink coffee in high-school, chances are the nine different options on campus helped you start.

To be transparent, I have fallen for this caffeine-fueled madness. Before university, I would drink the odd coffee, but it was sporadic. That changed very quickly during my first year of university studies. Studying at the University of Guelph has its benefits. One of which is the school has the best on-campus food in Canada, and this includes the variety of coffee options.

Is this a bad thing? Coffee has been known to provide the human body with beneficial antioxidants which is positive. Students love hearing that something they consume has antioxidants, it ‘counteracts’ the copious amounts of alcohol we ingest. That being said, the Venti, Half Sweet, Low-Fat, Caramel Macchiato you order probably won’t do much for your health.

Despite the possible benefits of coffee, addiction is something that is far from ideal. When you go without caffeine for a few days, a little thing called withdrawal happens. Within the first 20–60 hours after your last dose of caffeine, you will begin to see symptoms. The most common symptoms would be headaches, irritability, anxiety, and drowsiness. Even consuming coffee every day for two weeks can yield these symptoms after stopping.

The schools themselves also seem to enjoy the battle for coffee dominance on campus. Having such large brands can influence future students in picking where to attend. For example, two friends are walking on a tour and see a Starbucks, ‘Oh my gosh, we can totally get Starbucks together for studying.’

Little do those two friends realize that coffee has limited help in the apocalyptic world of exam season, but I digress. In a world where online presence is everything, getting a physical coffee location on campus can be a one-way ticket to business success. A lifetime consumer can potentially be one cup away, and that’s pretty damn good for business.