Starbucks and Peet's Reportedly Talking about Merger

Earlier this week we profiled , a barista at Echo Park's highly independent .  Now we get this news: Starbucks and Peet’s are talking about merging. 

Echo Park and the surrounding area don’t have a Peet's, which has a total of 192 retail outlets. But several Starbucks are popular in addition to a solid mix of indies like the , , LA Mill, Intelligentsia, and Cafecito Organico (just off Hoover in Silver Lake).

Northern California-based Peet’s is known for its humane management, and Starbucks still has its fans despite its dominance. (Just ask any in the long line daily in

Peet's sells packaged coffee through Safeway and Kroger's grocery stores, and the deal may be about growing that business.  Peet's has also said it wants to strengthen its single-cup sales.

Interestingly, Starbucks rolled out a new logo this week that removes the company name completely from its visual image.

What’s your view of a possible merger between the two power coffee chains? Will it change how you get your coffee and where?

Meantime, Fix Coffee has set the date for its next Thursday Throw Down, where local barista stars face off: Thursday, March 31 at 8 .p.m. at Fix.