Can the coffee editor market learn from Starbucks NFT plans?
Starbucks announced on May 3 that it will launch its first NFT collectible later this year and build a series of branded digital collections, aiming to create a virtual "third place." The move follows a 23% sales decline in the Chinese market, where the brand is losing its appeal among younger consumers to competitors like Luckin Coffee.
NFTs are indivisible, irreplaceable digital tokens that use blockchain to verify authenticity and ownership. Whether Starbucks can translate its physical "third place" concept into a virtual one remains uncertain, given the volatility and controversy surrounding the NFT market. Onlookers and industry insiders remain divided on the plan's prospects.
Starbucks' performance in China continues to decline, and it is trying to reshape its brand appeal by launching NFT digital collectibles and building a virtual "third place." However, the NFT market is highly volatile and constantly mired in controversy, so whether Starbucks can break through via the metaverse remains uncertain. This article sorts out the ins and outs of Starbucks' NFT plan and presents the different voices of netizens and industry insiders.
Starbucks' sales in the Chinese market fell by 23%, with negative news coming one after another, and it is no longer the object of pursuit among young consumers. Its competitor Luckin Coffee also has no time to compete with Starbucks, as it is busy with involution in the milk tea track, competing for young customer groups through co-branding, endorsements, and other methods.
Starbucks' former halo is fading, and now it seems it still wants to rely on its own unique coffee culture to further pass costs on to consumers. On May 3 local time in the United States, Starbucks announced that it would launch its first NFT collectible later this year and create a series of branded NFT collections.
When many people still have not figured out what the metaverse actually is, Starbucks has already begun laying out NFTs. NFT stands for Non-Fungible Token. Seeing this term, many people will associate it with virtual currency — yes, but not entirely. An NFT is like a card in the hands of a card-collecting player, with the characteristics of being indivisible, irreplaceable, and unique. It uses blockchain technology to verify the authenticity and ownership of a specific and unique digital object.
Starbucks' creation of a "digital third place" is not without basis. In earlier years, Starbucks coffee became famous for the concept of the "third place," providing customers with a place between home and the workplace, giving consumers a sense of connection and belonging to the Starbucks brand.
As new-style tea drinks and coffee brands continue to emerge, many brands are scrambling to imitate Starbucks' "third place" concept. If you want a comfortable environment for work and socializing, Starbucks is no longer the only option. This means that Starbucks' "third place" is gradually being squeezed.
Therefore, Starbucks has set its sights on the "third place" in the virtual world. According to an announcement on Starbucks' official website, Starbucks plans to create a series of branded NFT collections, and holders will gain community membership and be able to access exclusive experiences and benefits. The themes of the digital collectibles will cover both existing and innovative content, as well as content created in collaboration with other brands.
In short, by purchasing a new digital collectible from Starbucks, one can enter Starbucks' digital community. Starbucks' executive vice president and chief marketing officer said that this community can provide customers with high-quality content experiences and collaborations centered on coffee.
Unlike the physical third place, this virtual digital community centered on coffee and expanding into multiple fields fits popular elements among contemporary young people such as virtual currency and blockchain. But does NFT really have practicality?
NFT failures are common. Jay Chou's NFT worth millions of dollars was stolen around April Fools' Day, showing that NFTs are not invulnerable. A certain entrepreneur paid $2.9 million in March 2021 for the first tweet, and in just one year its value shrank to less than one ten-thousandth, eventually being auctioned off for $280, showing extremely high price volatility.
Starbucks has stepped into the emerging and hot field of NFTs, striving to be the first NFT player in the coffee world and wanting to be the first to eat crabs. Whether it can reap the dividends of NFTs and the metaverse is still unknown, but regarding this plan to create branded NFTs, some Starbucks technical staff have already raised questions with its executives.
On Twitter, netizens engaged in heated discussion around Starbucks and NFT collectibles. Some netizens said that so-called "NFT experts" are like teenagers drinking Frappuccinos saying they love coffee.
Some netizens also pointed out that Starbucks should focus more on coffee flavor and product development rather than creating NFTs.
Other netizens believe that Starbucks' move is to strengthen customers' loyalty to the Starbucks coffee brand.
As a new thing, NFTs are still being continuously explored in China in terms of judicial protection. As for Starbucks building a digital community and creating digital collectibles, what do you think?
Image source: Internet
For more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style) For professional coffee knowledge exchange, please add WeChat ID kaixinguoguo0925
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
