앞으로 스타벅스에서 술 판다 Starbucks to add alcohol in evenings
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세계적인 커피체인 스타벅스가 저녁 시간에 본격적으로 주류와 술안주도 판매하기로 결정했다.
블룸버그통신은 스타벅스의 트로이 올스테드 최고운영책임자(COO)가 20일(현지시간) 이처럼 밝혔다고 이날 보도했다.
스타벅스는 2010년 미국 워싱턴주 시애틀에서 오후 4시 이후 '스타벅스 이브닝스 메뉴'라는 이름으로 와인ㆍ맥주ㆍ술안주를 시범 판매해왔다. 지금은 시애틀, 일리노이주 시카고, 오리건주 포틀랜드, 캘리포니아주 로스앤젤레스, 조지아주 애틀랜타 등지의 26개 매장에서 주류를 판매하고 있다.
스타벅스는 이를 수년 안에 세계 2만여 매장 가운데 수천 곳 이상으로 확대할 계획이다. 이브닝스 메뉴를 제공하는 매장의 해당 시간대 매출이 짭짤하게 는 데 따른 조치다.
이브닝스 메뉴로 판매하는 주류는 스파클링 와인, 로제 와인, 스파클링 로제 와인, 화이트 와인, 레드 와인 등 와인 10여종과 맥주다.
여기에 치즈, 닭가슴살 꼬치, 대추 베이컨 말이, 마카로니와 치즈, 피자빵, 초콜릿 퐁듀, 치즈케이크 브라우니 같은 술안주와 간단한 식사도 제공된다.
하워드 슐츠 스타벅스 최고경영자(CEO)는 최근 샌드위치와 샐러드 메뉴를 강화하고 오후 시간 매출 확대에 관심 갖는 등 다양한 매출 확대 방안을 시도 중이다.
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Starbucks will expand its evening alcohol and light bites menu, which includes bacon-wrapped dates and Malbec wine, to thousands of stores, Chief Operating Officer Troy Alstead said in a phone interview.
The rollout, which can help boost sales, will take several years, he said.
"We've tested it long enough in enough markets -- this is a program that works," he said. "As we bring the evening program to stores, there's a meaningful increase in sales during that time of the day."
Starbucks has been focused on selling more non-coffee items, such as alcohol, juice, Teavana tea and food, to stoke U.S. growth. The company, which announced a long-term plan to almost double its market value to $100 billion yesterday, also is expanding and improving its rewards program and mobile applications. Earlier this month, Starbucks said it would soon test a way for customers to order items ahead of time with their smartphones. The shares fell 0.4 percent to $75.60 at 7:41 a.m. in New York. The Seattle-based company closed yesterday with a market capitalization of about $57.4 billion.
The company first sold alcohol in October 2010 at a Seattle store. In January 2012, Starbucks said it was expanding the test to as many as 25 locations in Chicago, Atlanta and Southern California. In Chicago, the after-4 p.m. menu includes fare such as truffle macaroni and cheese, chicken skewers, Chardonnay and chocolate fondue.
Urban Areas The evening food and drinks, which are in about 40 stores now, won’t work in all Starbucks cafes, Alstead said. He said they’ve seen success in some urban areas, near other restaurants and theaters, where people are out at night.
Last month, Chief Executive Officer Howard Schultz handed over the company’s day-to-day operations to Alstead, so Schultz could focus more on digital, mobile, loyalty and electronic- commerce initiatives. The company said yesterday in a statement that its mobile-payment application has been gaining traction.
Mobile payment now accounts for 14 percent of in-store transactions in the U.S., up from a 10 percent rate disclosed in July. Starbucks also said it will open at least 20 additional Teavana stores in the current fiscal year.
"Mobile is very important," Peter Saleh, a New York-based analyst at Telsey Advisory Group, said in a phone interview. "The companies that are taking share are the companies that have some mobile, digital platform -- Papa John’s, Domino’s, Starbucks, Dunkin'."
Loyalty Program Starbucks's loyalty program entices diners by offering free beverages, food and refills in return for points they’ve accumulated from purchases. Customers can pay with mobile phones or Starbucks cards that are linked to their account.
As part of its effort to sell more tea, the company will begin offering Oprah Winfrey-branded chai tea on April 29 at stores in the U.S. and Canada, Schultz said at the company’s annual meeting yesterday. Winfrey, the television personality and entrepreneur, tasted different tea varieties and helped Starbucks create the blend, which includes black and rooibos teas. "This felt like something that I really loved, that I really cared about," Winfrey told Schultz at the meeting. Starbucks will donate money from the tea’s sales to charities that support youth education.
Starbucks bought Teavana Holdings Inc. last year in a transaction valued at about $626 million. It has since been expanding the brand and plans to open tea bars in Chicago and Los Angeles this fiscal year.
Starbucks has more than 20,100 locations worldwide, including about 11,500 in the U.S.
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