“Won’t be bringing my cash either.... Not that I ever did.”
That one sentence explains exactly why he said what he said. Gun owners/conservatives/gun rights supporters have never been Starbucks target audience. Urban and suburban liberals have always been Starbucks’ main source of revenue, and a handful of “Starbucks appreciation days” did not change that. If being perceived as gun friendly hurt them more with their liberal customers than it helped them with conservatives (likely, as I don’t know many conservatives who regularly pay absurd price for bad coffee), then this was a good business move.
True. I hadn't thought about it but the gun-toters AREN'T Starbuckers, as a rule.
That is a misconception that is common among the low information public. Most Starbucks stores are frequented by a demographic typical to the local community. You go into a Starbucks in Texas (outside of Austin) and you will probably find mostly conservative middle class professionals and possibly college students. If you were to poll the political leanings of the clientele you will probably find about a 60% or more right-of-center leaning position, which is representative of the local community. If you happen to choose a store in Austin, or in downtown Houston, that would probably flip the other way based on the liberal leanings of those communities.