The Effect of Baristas on Consumer Satisfaction through Coffee Shop Atmosphere as an Intervening Variable

Abstract

Coffee shop is a rapidly growing business in the downstream agribusiness subsystem in various countries. The role of the barista and the atmosphere of the coffee shop are vital in providing consumer satisfaction to win the competition in the market. The research objective was to analyze the influence of the barista on customer satisfaction through the variable atmosphere of the coffee shop in the city of Cirebon. Cirebon City was chosen as the research location because it can represent a lowland city with many modern coffee shops around the world. The research was carried out in June-October 2022 using a survey method and a quantitative design. The research population is coffee shop consumers in Cirebon City, and the number of samples is 120 respondents. Measurement of variable indicators using a Likert Scale, data analysis using Structural Equation Modeling, and Sobel test. The study results concluded that the barista influences customer satisfaction through the coffee shop atmosphere as an intervening variable. The most dominant indicators explaining quality: barista is "hospitality," customer satisfaction is "feeling happy," and the atmosphere of the coffee shop is "coffee room/place" and "toilet." For this reason, it is recommended that coffee shop business actors improve the quality of hospitality barista, products, and room and toilet designs to help satisfy consumers and win the competition.