Ben Cummings' Blog

As mentioned in Adam Sanders blog post, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced that Starbucks will be offering a delivery service starting in 2015. To avid Starbucks drinkers, this may sound like a joke, as Starbucks is a high-end, welcoming, business oriented coffee shop. However, to businesses with employees, this may sound great as the employees could all put in delivery orders for drinks.

In my opinion, this is only getting Starbucks farther away from its original business model. Starbucks needs to focus on being a “Coffee shop” rather than a fast food restaurant. In 2013, when Starbucks introduced a large amount of drive thru’s, I feel that they took a big risk. Most coffee drinkers who want a quick coffee at a low price will choose Tim Horton’s over Starbucks. The espresso crowd will gladly park, do business on their mobile device while waiting in line, appreciate some friendly interaction with the “barista” and do some networking with other patrons customers waiting for their special order. As mentioned, Starbucks wants to be the third place between home and work, which coincides with the original business model of a welcoming environment, personal relationships, and customizable drinks. However, with drive thru’s and delivery services, Starbucks may begin to fall into the fast food category and may never regain the elite coffee shop status that they once were.

References

Starbucks’ new delivery system – more than just a new service