Starbucks To Launch Delivery, Other Mobile Initiatives After Disappointing Quarter

The Starbucks Corp. will begin offering food and drink delivery in some areas of the U.S. in 2015, the company announced Thursday. Delivery will be available to loyalty program members through Starbucks’ mobile app, but it won’t start until the second half of the year.

“Imagine the ability to create a standing order of Starbucks delivered hot to your desk daily,” the Verge quoted Chairman and CEO Howard Schultz as saying on a conference call. “That’s our version of e-commerce on steroids.”

The logistics of delivery are still being worked out. Delivery is just one of Starbucks’ new mobilecentric projects. Customers could also use their smartphones to order before they actually get to company stores, speeding up the ordering process and getting more caffeine addicts in and out. The Seattle-based firm launched a mobile-payment app last year, as the Verge reported.

These shifts in strategy come after a rough fiscal fourth quarter reported after the equity-market close Thursday, according to the Associated Press. Although the period ending Sept. 28 saw a 5 percent hike in same-store sales, the increase wasn’t big enough to meet Wall Street expectations. Starbucks’ revenue was expected to be $4.23 billion, but it came in at only $4.18 billion. The company's share price has dipped to as low as $74.92 in early trading Friday following its close at $77.32 Thursday.

The rise of online shopping means fewer people are visiting physical stores and shopping malls, the Chicago Tribune reported. “This is not a Starbucks issue. There is nothing external in terms of competitive issues,” Schultz said.

To remedy this and other issues, such as the growing number of fast-food chains that serve coffee, Starbucks is tinkering with its offerings. The company bought Teavana, plans to open 100 specialty “reserve” coffee shops and sold pumpkin spice lattes earlier than usual this fall, Forbes reported. “We are playing offense,” Schultz said.

Starbucks earned 74 cents per share last quarter, excluding special items. The company expects its earnings per share to be between 79 cents and 81 cents this quarter, which ends in December, AP reported.