>> Starbucks quietly settled an antitrust lawsuit with Penny Stafford of Belvi Coffee and Tea Exchange in Bellevue, who’d sued Starbucks after she was allegedly locked out of the best office space in Bellevue and Seattle by Starbucks’ exclusive leasing agreements with landlords. Stafford argued Starbucks’ “insatiable and unchecked ambition” amounts to being a monopoly.

>> Starbucks’ purchase of fair trace certified coffee stayed at a stagnant 6% in 2007, though according to its self-defined criteria, Starbucks’ coffee purchases from “sustainable suppliers went up from 53% to 65%.

>> Earlier this week, 100 Starbucks employees got laid off, including 25 at its Seattle headquarters. “In February, the company cut about 600 positions, some through attrition and about 220 through layoffs. Many of those jobs, including about a third of the layoffs, were at headquarters.” (via Starbucks Gossip) Maybe indie coffee shops are starting to win out?

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