Starbucks evolving brand

The colossal coffee chain Starbucks is trialling serving wine, beer and cheese in some of its American stores, as the 40-year-old company prepares to evolve its brand.

The testing ground for this revolution are Starbucks outlets in downtown Seattle. These very different, new-looking Starbucks, however, are reportedly more like neighbourhood café’s than the chain coffee house it is at present.

Based on a report by USA Today, Starbucks will be serving regional wine and beer as well as locally-made cheeses, all served on china plates. Even the interiors have been redesigned so that customers can opt to sit close to the barista bar which has been redesigned to give customers a closer look at their coffee, wine and beers and where they can also select from locally-made cheeses and cured meats. The focus is definitely on regionality as even the tables and chairs are to be made by local furniture makers.

Arthur Rubinfeld, global development chief at Starbucks, told USA Today: “It’s the biggest undertaking of design of any retailer in the world.”

Former Starbucks marketing chief Scott Bedbury added “that it was critical for Starbucks to evolve. Brands have to evolve or die, it’s a tall order. But if anyone can pull it off, it will be Starbucks”. However, the new set-up once rolled out globally could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, based on the fact that Starbucks has 16,000 stores.