What Do Starbucks Discounts Say About Coffee Shop Costs?

Starbucks has raised coupon frequency and deepened discounts, with bundles like three cups for 49.9 yuan and two for 39.9 yuan, and a medium Frappuccino at 12.84 yuan in official livestreams. The cuts contrast with its earlier statement of no intention to join a price war, and sales have not clearly rebounded.

Internally, the chain is controlling labor costs, and some office-building stores now close on holidays, a sharp shift for a brand long seen as premium. For anyone weighing how much does it cost to open a coffee shop, the case shows how pricing pressure, staffing and store hours decide whether margins hold.

Recently, Starbucks has frequently trended on social media due to its "purchase required to sit" policy, sparking intense discussions among netizens. At the same time, Starbucks has been rolling out coupons and live-stream discounts, with the price of a single drink even dropping below 20 yuan, in stark contrast to its earlier statement of "no intention to join a price war." To balance revenue and expenses, Starbucks is also controlling labor costs internally, with some office-building stores choosing to close on holidays. Although the brand is pulling out all the stops to attract customers, consumers' complaints that it is "overpriced and tastes bad" remain undiminished. Front Street Coffee has observed that in the increasingly cutthroat domestic coffee market, it is becoming harder and harder for Starbucks to maintain its lofty stance.

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Since Starbucks implemented its purchase-required-to-sit policy and trended on social media, netizens have been debating the topic endlessly over the past week, with fierce exchanges visible everywhere on social platforms—some even went to stores in person to conduct "social experiments," deliberately sitting down without buying anything to see whether staff would come over and ask them to order.

Beyond the heated discussions, some have also noticed that in addition to big moves like purchase-required-to-sit and opening its doors to welcome customers, Starbucks has quietly made quite a few small adjustments.

Starbucks has always pushed various coupons to its user accounts to drive consumption. Recently, some users have noticed that Starbucks has significantly increased the frequency of coupon distribution, and the coupon content has also changed. The previously common "3 cups for 55.9 yuan" and "2 cups for 45.9 yuan" have been adjusted to "3 cups for 49.9" and "2 cups for 39.9," which works out to less than 20 yuan per cup—a sharp contrast to the previous average price of 30 yuan per cup.

The discounts offered in the official live-stream have surprised longtime users even more: a medium Frappuccino actually costs only 12.84 yuan, less than half the original price. Netizens couldn't help but marvel that Starbucks, which had repeatedly said it had "no intention to join a price war," had in fact long since quietly entered the fray, competing fiercely on discount coupons.

On the other hand, through measures such as opening its doors to welcome customers, requiring purchases to sit, and price-cut promotions, Starbucks is trying every means to attract people into stores and thereby boost store revenue. And to maintain its balance of revenue and expenses, Starbucks has also rolled out corresponding internal measures.

Some job seekers have reported on social platforms that although Starbucks' official account posts recruitment information, after getting in touch they discovered that the stores are not actually hiring. According to Starbucks internal employees, Starbucks is currently hiring more part-time staff; even if full-time employees leave and positions open up, internal promotions will be prioritized as much as possible to keep labor costs down.

In addition, Starbucks employees also said that recently some stores relying on office buildings have not been doing well. Therefore, whenever there is a holiday, office workers in the buildings are off and not at work, and the stores downstairs also close accordingly to reduce operating expenses.

These signs all show the public that today's Starbucks finds it very difficult to maintain its lofty stance amid fierce industry competition, and #StarbucksIsAnxiousToo# even surged onto the trending topics today. In most people's view, the constant stream of moves by Starbucks is undoubtedly a sense of crisis under intense competitive pressure, forcing it to make changes that cater to market demand.

But for the vast number of consumers, Starbucks' collaborations, new product launches, and price-cut promotions do not win their favor, and complaints that "Starbucks coffee is overpriced and tastes bad" have long persisted. And the brand's use of purchase-required-to-sit to protect the advantage of its "third space" may, in many people's view, also struggle to change the current situation of "coffee not selling."

Perhaps, surrounded by domestic chain coffee brands, the days of Starbucks being anxious and burning with urgency over store sales will continue for a long time to come.

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.