By Gene Johnson
Associated Press
TUKWILA, Wash. – Coffee-stand owner John Cambroto couldn’t compete against the beautiful bikini-clad women selling espresso up the road.
“We had a much better atmosphere, good coffee. Unfortunately, they ran around half-naked, and we didn’t,” said Cambroto, who finally threw in the towel last spring and sold his business to his rival, the operator of six Cowgirls Espresso stands in the Seattle suburbs.
The naughty baristas of Cowgirls Espresso represent a new trend in and around Seattle – perhaps the most caffeinated city in America – and illustrate how cutthroat the competition can be in the hometown of Starbucks, which has multiple coffee shops competing on the same block.
Among the other coffee stands that are showing some skin: Moka Girls in Auburn, The Sweet Spot Cafe in Shoreline, Bikini Espresso in Renton and Natte Latte in Port Orchard.
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