(AROUND THE WEB) — “The last thing neighborhoods want is another bank. So it was important to create something that doesn’t feel like a bank,” said Capital One’s market manager, Mike Friedman.
Chinatown, in Washington DC, just became home to another bank, but this one promotes coffee over banking. That’s right, behold the new Capital One Cafe.
Capital One is rebranding with its focus on drawing in younger customers. The idea of a cafe styled bank is to change the way customers view banking. Instead of sterile walls and queue lines, Capital One Cafe offers a lounge styled environment equipped with dozens of outlets, free WiFi, mid-century modern tables and chairs, and loads of coffee.
Interest rates and money market accounts are not spoken here, that is unless the customer asks. In fact, not much banking is done at all. Customers are encouraged to stay as long as they’d like, make themselves comfortable, and get some work done.
You get 50 percent off coffee, tea, and donuts if you use a Capital One credit or debit card, which may be enough of an incentive for those who need coffee as much as water to switch over.
Capital One will also host seminars, the meeting space free of charge, for nonprofits and college groups, covering everything from financial literacy to money coaching.
The overall goal? Reinvent the relationship between customers and their bank.
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