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'We don't want to be an office:' Café owners are pulling the plug on WiFi
When HotBlack Coffee opened in downtown Toronto a year ago, it took a risk few businesses would dare take in today's online-driven world: it turned off the WiFi.
"Every day people come in and ask for it," says Jimson Bienenstock, the café's co-owner.
Still, he hasn't wavered.
"In the short term, it hurt us," Mr. Bienenstock says. "It took us longer to become established, but once we reached critical mass, it has become a self-fulfilling virtuous circle."
While most cafés offer free WiFi, including large chains such as Starbucks, McDonald's and Tim Hortons, HotBlack is among a small but growing number of independent coffee shops choosing to ditch or limit Internet use. By not offering WiFi, they're hoping to create more of a community atmosphere where people talk to each other instead of silently typing on their computers.
If coffeeshops come to discourage people working, perhaps that activity can shift to libraries.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 02 2017, @06:32AM (1 child)
This is downtown Toronto we're talking about, not the middle of nowhere. Chances are the neighbors have Wi-Fi that reaches HotBlack.
Me, I'd rather eat at Mi Taco Taqueria next door at 247 Queen St anyhow.
Last time I visited a Chipotle Mexican Grill, I used the wi-fi of the neighboring La Quinta Inn.
(Score: 2) by aristarchus on Tuesday May 02 2017, @07:29AM
This is downtown Toronto we're talking about, not the middle of nowhere.
I do not understand. Are not these synonymous terms? Gordon Lightfoot sang about it, and I Don't Want to Go to Toronto! [youtube.com] ("There is a tower in Toronto that controls people's minds! There is a tax on all wicker good in Toronto!")