Okay, I want to be super clear on this one: Do you have to pay for the coffee once you pass security / they know you work there? Or is that coffee shop not part of the company and just so happens to be onsite?
Don't know about Amazon, but there are two coffee options at my employer (past security):
1. A chain coffee shop you have to pay for. No discount that I can perceive.
2. Free coffee machines.
#1 used to be extremely popular when #2 consisted of Douwe Egberts machines that used some weird coffee concentrate that made terrible and weak coffee. Now I think #1 closes early and has low staffing because the #2 got upgraded to espresso machines that use decent beans and can also do basic espresso drinks (Americano, Latte, etc).
But to answer your question, the coffee shop is not part of the company, you do have to pay for your coffee and it is past security.
It's not all that germane to the article, more of an aside, so thanks for that indulgence.
The motivation is from this old post here: https://steveblank.com/2009/12/21/the-elves-leave-middle-ear...
Things get shittier and shittier in a company known to be shitty to it's employees
The office my team is in is setup so there's a long hallway that has the security corridor, then a coffee shop, then a convenience store then the elevators. Anyone coming into the office has to walk through all of these to get to the elevators to go to their floor.
Last time I was there, they'd put desks in hallway between the coffee shop and the convenience store, and they were always full.
You'd think if they were doing this for productivity, they wouldn't be sticking desks in the hallway everyone has to walk through all the time.