Starbucks Opens First Signing Store For Deaf Customer In US

U.S. coffee giant Starbucks opened its first “signing store” in the United States Tuesday in northeast Washington near the campus of Gallaudet, the world’s only university with an entire curriculum designed to accommodate the deaf and hard-of-hearing.

At the café, which is modeled after a store that opened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2016, all staff — most of them deaf or hard-of-hearing themselves — are required to communicate with customers using sign language.

Employees are also taught how to do their jobs in ASL and the store also offers job opportunities to the community.

A video posted to Twitter shows customers being warmly greeted as they enter the new Washington, D.C. location.

The new café also includes other deaf-centric space features, including artwork and designs on mugs created by deaf artists, a tablet system where customers can write rather than speak (or sign) an order, and a screen that flashes a customer’s name when their order is ready.

To help with visibility, lights are kept bright in the store, counters are matte to reduce glare and chairs and tables are low to the ground.

“At the point of sale, people see [signing] immediately and sometimes stand there in awe,” Kylie Garcia, a deaf barista, told CNN. “They’re used to talking to people right away. It’s a role reversal.”

By: Maytinee Kramer