Member-only story
One, Two — Third Place
The Magic of Libraries and Places We Belong
As a coffee drinker you probably have strong feelings one way or another about Starbucks. When it was first created a large component of the company was the idea of the third place.
The Starbucks policy statement reads in part:
We want our stores to be the third place, a warm and welcoming environment where customers can gather and connect.
My first encounter of this concept when I read a book about the creation of the company in the late 90's.
The term third place is attributed to “sociologist Ray Oldenburg and refers to places where people spend time between home (‘first’ place) and work (‘second’ place).” (Brookings.edu)
Third places are about ideas, life giving experiences and relationships.Many third places are now virtual with how we interact with each other.
According to Brookings.edu:
Third places have a number of important community-building attributes. Depending on their location, social classes and backgrounds can be “leveled-out” in ways that are unfortunately rare these days, with people feeling they are treated as social equals… One commentator refers to third places as the “living room” of society.
