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Starbucks To Start Delivering (To The Empire State Building)
By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 18, 2015
Modified Mar 18, 2015
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 18, 2015
Modified Mar 18, 2015
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Starbucks has already taken steps toward becoming a bar, an upscale lounge, and a McDonald's drive-thru, so it was only a matter of time before they became Seamless as well. Starbucks announced today that it will begin testing delivery in Seattle and New York—specifically, at the Empire State Building.
Starbucks has been hinting at expanding into delivery for ages, but this is the first real step in that direction: "We’re taking the definition of the Starbucks run to a whole new level," Adam Brotman, the company’s chief digital officer, told Bloomberg. "We’re really excited about how this mobile ecosystem is coming together and allowing us to add new features."
There will be two separate tests of the system: in Seattle, customers will order and pay for delivery through the Starbucks mobile app in a partnership with Postmates (there will be a flat delivery fee whether the order is for one item or 10). In NYC, an actual employee from a nearby Starbucks location will hand-deliver the order (this will also include a yet-to-be-disclosed delivery fee). It's unclear whether Empire State Building tenants will be able to engage the delivery person in a conversation about race.
So far, the company hasn't specified when the pilot programs will launch, but they say sometime in the second half of 2015. "The truth is we’re not sure exactly how it will play out," Brotman told Re/Code. "Is one the national approach and one for dense urban environments only? We are truly in learning mode right now but we’re excited about them both."
This isn't the only big Starbucks change possibly on the horizon in NYC: The Observer notes that the leases of several large Starbucks locations in Manhattan are coming up, and they may get priced out of the island. Instead of paying new rents that will be double what they originally signed, they may just open more smaller locations instead: "In today’s world of rising rents, especially on the high-profile corridors, likely Starbucks knows they can still be successful in smaller space and/or just off the main avenues," said retail specialist Robin Abrams of Lansco.
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delivery
empire state building
starbucks
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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