Like millions of people, Daniel Nash heads to his nearest Starbucks every morning and orders a grande cup. “I don’t really go for the cappuccinos or lattes,” says the Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld labor and employment partner and longtime Starbucks Corporation attorney. “The drip coffee, Gold Coast blend, is my favorite.”
As a Starbucks regular, Nash is well acquainted with how the chain serves its coffee. Behind every successful caramel macchiato or cinnamon dolce frappuccino is a team of green apron–clad employees—one takes the order, another works the gleaming espresso machine, yet another may finish off the drink by tapping in just the right amount of sugar. And if Nash wants to say an extra “thank you” for his personalized caffeine fix, he does what many Starbucks customers do: He drops some change into the 4-inch Plexiglas cube that sits by the register at every store—a tip to be divided among all those helping hands.
