Customer enters CCK Starbucks and exits again: "Why do students have more rights than normal patrons?"

A Starbucks patron was frustrated when she walked into a Starbucks at Choa Chu Kang on Dec 3 only to find that most of the seats and tables were occupied by students.

A Stomper alerted Stomp to a Facebook user's post on Starbucks Singapore's page.

She wrote:

"Went into Starbucks near Lot 1 and came out again.

"WHY?

"There was [nowhere] to sit.

"[Three] long rows and a few more tables, all occupied by students with laptops. When I first walked in, I thought we were in a student centre, not Starbucks. We have [nowhere] to sit.

"Shouldn't Starbucks do something about this? [Why] do the students have more rights than normal patrons?"

The coffee chain responded to the woman's post, thanking her for sharing her "suggestions".

"Starbucks welcomes all customers and looks to find the right balance between freeing up seats for everyone’s use while making sure everyone can linger and enjoy their Starbucks experience in a way that works best for each individual," it wrote.

"Having said that, we do hear you and we have raised this to the management and will continue working hard to ensure that we create a warm and welcoming environment for all. We hope to do better to serve everyone in the future.

"Thank you for your patience."

This is the latest in a string of complaints about students "hogging" spaces at cafes like Starbucks.

The trend emerged as a hot-button issue in September after a girl was flamed for complaining about being asked to leave a Starbucks outlet because she was studying.