What happens to an international consumer brand once it starts ailing and laying off employees?

In the worst case, a blog of former and current employees of the company would start sharing secrets and discussing all ‘the dirt’ online, as it occured in the case of Starbucks. Grab a cup of Joe and stop on by ‘Starbucks Gossip’ to get the latest in barista rage and witness how one of the great international consumer brand phenomenons is losing its’ magic.

This new found freedom of speech opens the possibilities of low cost, overnight, viral marketing tremendously, but it also adds a new level of risk management to brands worldwide, which makes another phenomenon the best call for help: Google.

Above you can see a proposed re-design of the Starbucks name and logo by architect James Biber, as featured in Architects magazine.