December 18, 2018
Thom Carroll/PhillyVoice
The Starbucks coffeeshop on North 20th Street in Philadelphia.
In the age of instant gratification, the reasons to leave your home are getting pretty numbered. Groceries, takeout, booze, and even Geno's are available for delivery. So what's next?
Starbucks, apparently.
The coffee giant announced that it will join UberEats in 2019, offering delivery from more than 2,000 store locations nationwide. That means that buying coffee prepared by a barista, the nectar that many of us opt for to start functioning every day, won't even require a trip outside your apartment. This could be especially concerning if you work from home.
Starbucks has been testing a partnership with Uber Eats over the last year, currently delivering from about 100 locations in Miami. Starbucks COO Rosalind Brewer announced last week that the tests went well and national expansion will begin around March or April of 2019.
Delivery options won't include any and all esoteric drinks preferences, however. The most popular items will be available, but you might not have as much luck if you're trying to get, say, a peppermint mocha in the middle of the summer.
The delivery model also leads to some other questions that will be answered when the time comes. For example, how will drinks be stored for delivery to avoid spillage and to keep them warm? Are those paninis and breakfast sandwiches part of the deal? Will the delivery fees hack up the price so much that it's not even worth it?
Only time will tell. What we do know, for now, is that the most popular item ordered for delivery during the Miami testing phase was the Caramel Frappuccino. So there's that.
This isn't the first time Starbucks has teamed up with a delivery service, also working with Postmates in 2015 to bring delivery to the Seattle area.
The Uber Eats announcement comes a few months after Starbucks' other news promising 10,000 "Greener Stores" around the world by 2025. This means LEED certification and a 25 percent cut of energy consumption, along with other store initiatives aimed at cutting waste.
Follow Marielle & PhillyVoice on Twitter: @mariellemondon | @thePhillyVoice
Like us on Facebook: PhillyVoice
Add Marielle's RSS feed to your feed reader
Have a news tip? Let us know.
