Fresh juice selling stores are feeling threatened by Starbucks’ new line of fresh juices. As Starbucks’ is gearing up to start their own fresh juice line one juice merchant in New York City’s East Village, who inspired the Starbucks CEO to make juices, is starting to feel worried. Read more after the jump.

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As Starbucks prepares to expand into the fresh juice business, one juice merchant in New York City’s East Village who helped inspire Starbucks’ CEO Howard Schultz is worried he may soon be squeezed out.

Doug Green, 45, is the founder and manager of Liquiteria, one of the first, and by some accounts, best juice bars in America. Devoted fans include Natalie Portman, Oprah Winfrey and Brooke Shields.

Paul Clayton, the former Jamba Juice CEO, frequently brought groups of his executives to the store. “I used him and his store as inspiration for my team,” he said, adding that the place was a great source for product ideas.

Liquiteria began in 1996, before celebrity juice fasts were the rage and when most juicers were filthy stations in the back of musty health food stores.

Though Green started Liquiteria on a shoestring budget from his own savings, the juice industry had become so big by last summer that Liquiteria caught the eye of Starbucks’ Schultz.

On one visit, Green recognized the CEO and introduced himself. “He said he really loved the store and thought it was really great, which I thought was an honor coming from someone with his background,” recalled Green.

Not long after, Schultz stunned the store owner by poaching his right-hand woman, Liquiteria manager Yohana Bencosme, 26, to help build a juice business. Green felt betrayed by Schultz, and passed over for not being offered a job, too.

“The whole reason I decided to do this almost 20 years ago was to create an awareness for something I deeply believe in,“ Green said, ”so what better platform to do that than on the Starbucks stage?”

His customers, too, expressed outrage. “[Liquiteria] should sue the sh*t out of [Starbucks] and open and patent 10 more Liquiterias with the settlement,” wrote one commenter on an East Village blog. “Never setting foot in a Starbucks again. Put the word out…” wrote another.

Then, only a few weeks later, more bad news. Rumors began circulating that Green’s close friend Jimmy Rosenberg was selling his Evolution Juice company to the same coffee magnate. “I just passed it off as a bad rumor,” said Green.

Rosenberg, previously the founder of Naked Juice, had pioneered a heat-free pasteurization method. “Over the years we talked about opening juice shops together,” said Green. “He calls me brother. We say I love you.”

Two weeks ago, Starbucks purchased Evolution for $30 million, and planned to launch a new set of retail stores with a juice focus. Rosenberg would continue to work at the company as chief juice officer.

“No one deserves it more than Jimmy,” said Green, who added that though he was happy for his friend, he couldn’t help but feel passed over again. He also quickly realized Starbucks was about to change the entire industry.

“If [Schultz] does for juice what he did for coffee, forget about it. They’ll just take over the whole market,” said Green.

“As long I am a Liquitera customer, I believe thousands and thousands of others will continue to be Liquiteria customers because my standards are very high, and people love what we stand for. Obviously Howard did,” Green quipped.
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