COSTA RICA EXTRA – A single 150-pound bag of Geisha brand coffee from Costa Rica will highlight Starbucks new experimental retail designs as part of its effort to dominate the coffee market.
Starbucks, which has been adding more than 1,500 stores a year, in December, will unveil a store where only limited brands of coffee will be sold under the trademark Reserve. The flagship of the 100 stores planned over the next five years will be in its hometown of Seattle.
“It’s going to be this mix of roasting, manufacturing and retailing in one café,” said Starbucks spokeswoman Haley Drage. “It’s going to be massive: 15,000 square feet. It’s really going to be an immersive experience to our customers.”
“Some of those coffees, you might only see once in a lifetime,” said Drage.
As for the rest of the 100 stores that will only sell Reserve, Drage said they’ll be normal-sized retail locations, not a sprawling site like the one in Seattle.
The company plans to offer new apps to allow ordering via smartphones at the express locations.
Starbucks says it expects to have increased its store count by 1,550 in the fiscal year ending next month, with plans to add another 1,600 over the following 12 months.
Source: CNN Money
