Hooray for my first blog post for this year! It's been a tough 2017 and 2018, I had a lot of personal and career setbacks that threw me off my writing game. I know that my blog has been severely neglected, but hopefully not this time around! Since I didn't post a review on this item for the past 2 years, I think it's only fitting that I start 2019 with a Starbucks Planner Review. In my opinion, the 2016 planner was the best in terms of packaging because it just came with a plastic wrap. Ditch the box next time please.
I've been using Starbucks Planners since 2005 (I think) and have never used anything else despite the fact that there are cheaper alternatives out there in the market. I always order a grande, no whip, iced white chocolate mocha which is 180 PHP - thus spending 3,240 PHP (62 USD) on 18 cups of coffee to avail the planner. Props to the company for not requiring holiday drink purchases this year.
They also brought back a carrier pouch. While the design is simpler, it's still a huge upgrade from the 2017 version - the brass branding and the zipper pull made it superior to its predecessor. I think the card pocket is unnecessary since I'm going to be placing the Starbucks card in my wallet, but if you're using the bag for another purpose then I guess it works as extra storage space.
Vouchers were reduced from 10 to 7. I've only used the BOGO coupons ever since, although I do recall using a free upgrade and one that gave a discount for a tumbler purchase years ago. Here's to hoping Starbucks comes up with better coupons next year.
I prefer no lines though having them in a planner is fine, but I can't get over this grid pattern. It feels like I'm using a graphing paper (like the ones I used for Math back in school) which made it look cheap. Paper quality has not changed. I might use the the leather sleeve from last year instead of the pouch it came with since I need a place to store all my loose papers.
The cover art is nice, but the overall design is lack luster to a point that I feel like the creative team put in all their effort to the Travel Organizer (which was another let down for me) and just did "whatever" with the planner. I am very much aware that the goal was to capture the authentic expression of handcrafting, but the color scheme is comparable to a school project. My Starbucks visits have been greatly reduced last year, and since the past two releases wasn't at all exciting for me, I'm seriously contemplating on just purchasing a different planner for 2020. I know Starbucks donates a portion of the proceeds of their sales to charity and that has always been a good reason for me to get myself one, but the 2019 planner didn't indicate if they were. I can't even find any documentation about it online.
My eyes are currently set for a BDJ planner for 2020. What are your thoughts on the this year's Starbucks Planner?
