Cold brew coming in hot... Most important update from Starbucks' investor day: Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew outsold the infamous Pumpkin Spice Latte. Second most important update: oat milk is going nationwide (expect a brown sugar + iced espress-oat concoction). The non-drinkable update: Starbs is planning to open 22K+ new stores in the next ten years, to hit 55K total by 2030.
Not all Starbs are created equal... For Starbucks, there's no such thing as a one-size-fits-all store approach. For an urban hotspot, your typical ~1K ft cafe might be too small. For other neighborhoods, a ballroom-sized Starbucks Reserve might be too big (only for Java snobs). So Starbucks is "canvassing," whipping up different cafes for different needs:
- Drive-thrus: Expect more of these, especially in the burbs. Starbs sales have migrated outside of the city as people move home.
- "Walk-thrus": Order in-app, pay in advance, walk in, and grab. Expect these to pop up in dense city centers.
Our 1st glimpse at "The Return of the Routine"... Starbucks' investor day was majorly focused on looking beyond the corona-conomy. The CEO believes caffeine lovers will flock back to cafes once the pandemic is over, and Starbs' investment in thousands of new stores shows he means it. Starbucks is banking on a return to routine.