In recent years, it is common for coffee chains to expand rapidly such as Starbucks or Compose Coffees. It is widely believed that the increase in the number of coffee chains does not threaten the survival of small local cafés because there are many people who prefer unique and cozy local cafes to chains. However, there is a pervasive opinion that the rapid increase in coffee chains threatens the survival of small local cafés, and I agree with this point of view.
First, big coffee chains can sell coffee at lower prices than local coffee shops because of economies of scale. Because big coffee companies can buy massive amounts of coffee beans and machines that they need, the expenditure on these is smaller than that of local shops which much spend much more money on them. For example, Compose Coffee, which is a popular coffee chain in Korea, sells Americanos for about 1800 won, which is approximately half the price of local shops. For this reason, people who want to drink coffee at a lower price prefer chain shops.
Second, because coffee chains have large budgets, they can be located in well-situated spots with huge sizes. In case of Starbucks, they are always located in front of crosswalks so that citizens crossing the roads can easily find and enter them. In contrast, as many local cafes have small budgets, their owners need to find places that are cheap but not seen easily, such as second-floor or underground spots. However, because many people these days go to cafes to study or rest, they prefer big and well-situated chain cafes. Because of that, small local cafes continue to disappear.
In conclusion, I agree that the survival of local cafes is threatened due to economies of scale and the location of chain coffee shops.