On Wed, 13 Sep 2000, fabio guillermo rojas wrote:
> Why do cafes allow people to take up space and not buy anything?
>
> Cynics answer: cafe's discourage free riders by having small
> uncomfortable furniture (see Starbuck's on E 53rd in chicago).
Not in the Starbucks nearest my house in Berkeley. They even have a sofa
and some big soft armchairs.
I don't see any totally free riders there, despite its comfortable
furniture. Possibly there are free riders who use the bathroom.
My guess is the manager does not want to alienate customers who may have
gotten food and drink and then tossed the container, but continue to use
the table. It's not easy to discriminate among the users, and they do a
brisk business anyway. The marginal cost of a sitter is about zero until
all the tables are taken, and then social pressure induces greater
density, as sitters get asked if they mind sharing a table.
The free riding mostly occurs for folks getting one drink and then sitting
for a long time. But as long as tables are available, it doesn't matter.
Much of the business is to-go, anyway. Lap-top users get electricity at
no extra charge, so free-riding has several margins.
Fred Foldvary
