Posted on 04/29/2009 12:27:54 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Is coffee recession-proof?
Reading the bad news about Starbucks, you'd sure think it wasn't. But while some Starbucks locations have been forced to close their doors due to dropping sales and tightening purse strings, it might surprise you to know that many -- if not a majority of -- local coffee shops are weathering this recession well.
Over the last couple of weeks, I've spoken with several local roasters and café employees to learn why the neighborhood coffee shop doesn't need a bailout.
Coffee occupies a tenuous place in our everyday routines. Is that morning latte on the way to work something you should cut out? Or is it an everyday luxury that you can still allow yourself?
Most of those in the coffee-house business with whom I spoke told me the economy hasn't hurt coffee drinkers so badly that they're abandoning their morning ritual completely.
Verner Earls of Chauvin Coffee Company said most of the cafes to which Chauvin sells coffee are doing as well as they ever have -- some have even been reporting record sales. "People aren't going to give up the latte," claims Verner. "Bigger expenses will go first."
Another strength of the coffee house in these times: The coffee drinker is a creature of habit. You might consider an iPod or another luxury good a splurge, but the coffee drinker views that cup as an inseparable part of the daily ebb and flow of life. "A self-professed coffee snob like myself will only give up coffee when I have no money," admits Verner. "I'd give up gasoline before I'd give up coffee."
Some consumers are already making that choice at Velocity Café and Cyclery. Susan Gyorog opened her café in October of last year -- Ground Zero for the economic crisis. She said so far sales have been what she anticpated. She attributed part of her success to Velocity's niche in the cycling community, but also to its food options: "If we had to survive on lattes alone, we wouldn't make it."
Another place that's doing well during the recession is Hartford Coffee Company in Tower Grove South. Rita, a manager there, attributed the coffee house's continued success to its family-friendly atmosphere and stable prices. "The price of food has gone up, but we're keeping our prices the same," Rita says. "We don't think this is an appropriate time to rise prices."
What about fair-trade or organic coffee? When times are tight, do ethics go first? The answer I heard was a resounding no. All of the roasters with whom I spoke -- even those who have little fair-trade or organic coffee -- said that buyers with an ethical eye have continued to patronize the shops where they can support their causes. Susan Gyorog says, "We think it's important to support coffee farmers, and it's worth a little smaller margin."
(And let's be honest: If you're already paying $10 a pound for your coffee, what's another dollar or two to support a cause you believe in?)
Interestingly, of the cafés and roasters I questioned, those who dedicated a larger portion of their coffee to fair-trade, organic or another ethical certification reported that business has stayed the same, if not increased slightly. Looks like there are no fair weather fans of fair trade.
While fair-trade and organic sales might seem unaffected, there have been some changes in customers' buying habits. "Coffee's an affordable luxury," says Josh Ferguson of Kaldi's Coffee Roasting Company. Still, Josh echoes other café employees when he says he has seen a movement from espresso-based drinks (typically more expensive) toward drip coffee. Whole-bean sales are also up as customers look for ways to limit their expenses and still get their caffeine fix.
The affordability of the café has long been its strongest suit, regardless of the economy. It's a great spot to have a date, read a book, do work, get a bite to eat, meet friends new and old...and it's open to those of all ages. Do we have an equally versatile public space in the U.S. today?
Best of all, admission is only the cost of a cup of coffee -- as little as $1. So go on, treat yourself. Have another cup.
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Zach Dyer is a writer living in Saint Louis. He did his thesis research on coffee farmers in Southern Mexico. Since then, he has visited coffee plantations in Costa Rica and Mexico as well as roasters and cafés across the U.S. He blogs about coffee for Gut Check every Wednesday.
bfl
It’smy observation that most Starbucks customers buy there for the image. With money tight, the 99 cent coffee at 7-11 starts to look just as good.
$5 coffees were always laughable... and now everyone dumb enough to spend that much on them can now sit back and think about how much spare cash they’d have in their savings when they got that layoff notice if they hadn’t spent $5 a day on starbucks.
So, you’re saying the high end coffee business is in the doldrums while the low end stuff has more resistance ?
I’m done with Starbucks after their corporate decision to promote Kiss Your Partner, or whatever the name was, on April 15. The last thing I needed was to wander into one to get a frapuccino and have my kids see two guys or two gals kissing. If you haven’t yet tried McDonald’s iced coffee, go through a drive thru today! I paid $2.49 for the large size, caramel flavor, and it’s fantastic!
STARBUCKS MENU :
Our Coffee and Espresso Beverages are made with genuine Starbucks® Espresso. Decaffeinated coffee, non-fat milk, and soy milk are available upon request. For most of our drinks, you can add:
Caramel - .35¢ Espresso Shot - .55¢ Flavor Shot - .55¢
Drink Tall Grande Venti
Coffee of the Day
Regular and Decaf $1.40 $1.60 $1.70
Caffé Latte
Espresso & steamed milk $2.55 $3.10 $3.40
Caffé Americano
Espresso & hot water $1.75 $2.05 $2.40
White Chocolate Mocha
White chocolate flavored version of our classic Caffé Mocha $3.20 $3.75 $4.00
Caffé Mocha
Espresso, cocoa, steamed milk & whipped cream $2.75 $3.30 $3.55
Cappuccino
Espresso, steamed & foamed milk $2.55 $3.10 $3.40
Caramel Macchiato
Foamed milk marked with espresso, vanilla & real caramel $2.80 $3.40 $3.65
Drink Tall Grande Venti
Iced Caffé Latte
Espresso & milk poured over ice $2.55 $3.10 $3.50
Iced Caffé Mocha
Espresso & steamed milk $2.75 $3.30 $3.70
Iced Caffé Americano
Espresso & water poured over ice $1.75 $2.05 $2.50
Iced White Chocolate Mocha
White Chocolate, Espresso,
& milk over ice $3.20 $3.75 $4.15
Iced Caramel Macchiato
Espresso, milk & vanilla over ice, & topped with real caramel $2.80 $3.40 $3.80
Tazo® Iced Chai Latte
Lightly sweetened black teas, spices & milk served over ice $2.70 $2.95 $3.35
Tazo® Iced Tea
Traditional black tea blend - crisp & refreshing
$1.25 $1.40 $1.70
Frappé
Mayfield ice cream, milk, and espresso blended to a milkshake consistency $4.15
Creamice®
Milk, espresso, and any of our list of flavors blended into a smooth, creamy delight $3.65
Drink Tall Grande Venti
Espresso
Starbucks espresso roast, smooth & satisfying $1.45 $1.75
Espresso Macchiato
Espresso gently marked with foam $1.45 $1.75
Espresso Con Panna
Espresso topped with whipped cream $1.45 $1.75
Drink Tall Grande Venti
Tazo® Chai Latte
Lightly sweetened black teas & spices, steamed with milk $2.70 $2.95 $3.35
Tazo® Hot Tea
Black tea blend - A variety of flavors are available $1.15 $1.65 $1.70
Hot Chocolate
The finest cocoa, blended with
hot milk $2.20 $2.45 $2.70
Steamed Cider
Rich apple cider steamed to perfection - now in stock year-round $1.75 $2.00 $2.25
Steamed Milk
Whole, 2% & non-fat
Add a shot or two of any of our flavors to give it a kick* $2.00 $2.25 $2.50
Fountain Drink
Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, Mellow Yellow, Dr. Pepper or Minute Maid Lemonade $1.00 $1.50
Milkshake
Made with delicious Mayfield® Ice Cream. Chocolate, Vanilla, Strawberry, or Flavor of the Month $3.65
Coke Float
Coke and Mayfield® Ice Cream.
Try it blended.
$2.50
Item Price
Mayfield® Ice Cream
Chocolate, Vanilla, Strawberry, and our flavor of the month $1.00
per scoop
Ice Cream Sandwich
Straight out of the ice cream
hall-of-fame $0.75
Orange Push-Up
The childhood classic
Some things never change. $1.00
Gourmet Muffins
Chocolate Chocolate Chip, Blueberry, and Bannana Nut $2.50
Cookie
Large, mouth-watering cookies
Flavor selection varies $1.25
Popcorn
Get it while it’s hot. Get it while
it’s buttered. $1.00
Item Price
Bottled Frappuccino®
Vanilla, mocha or coffee flavor $1.40
Starbucks Doubleshot®
$1.75
Dasani®
Regular, Lemon, and Strawberry $1.40
Vault® $1.40
Coca-Cola Blãk ® $1.40
Power Aid®
Lemon-lime, Mountain Blast, and
Fruit Punch $1.40
Pro Slammers®
Hard Chocolate
$1.40
Bottled Juice
Apple or Orange $1.40
Full Throttle ®
Regular and Fury varieties $2.00
*Add a shot of flavor to any of our drinks - $0.55 per flavor
Almond Creme de Mint
Amaretto Hazelnut
Caramel Irish Creme
Cherry Raspberry
Cinnamon Vanilla
(Regular and Sugar-Free)
COFFEE STATISTICS: 50% of the population, equivalent to 150 million Americans, drink espresso, cappuccino, latte, or iced/cold coffees.
COFFEE SHOP FACTS: Independent coffee shops equal $12 billion in annual sales.
At the present time there are approximately 24,000 Coffee Shops across the country. Statistics show there will be approximately 50,000+ Coffee Shops by the year 2010.
Over 50% of Americans over 18 years of age drink coffee every day. This represents over 150 million daily drinkers. 30 million American adults drink specialty coffee beverages daily; which include a mocha, latte, espresso, café mocha, cappuccino, frozen/iced coffee beverages, etc.
Men drink as much coffee as women; each consuming an average of 1.6 cups per day. Women seem to be more concerned about the price than men. Among coffee drinkers, the average consumption in the United States is 3.2 cups of coffee per day.
The average coffee cup size is 9 ounces.
30% of the population drinks coffee occasionally.
65% of all coffee is consumed during breakfast hours, 30% between meals, and the remaining 5% with other meals.
The average Espresso Drive-thru Business sells approximately 200-300 Cups of Espresso and Coffee Based Drinks per day.
Women indicated that drinking coffee is a good way to relax. Men indicated that coffee helps them get the job done.
The United States imports in excess of $4 Billion worth of coffee per year.
Americans consume 400 million cups of coffee per day making the United States the leading consumer of coffee in the world.
On an average, 250 Cups of espresso and coffee drinks are sold per day at almost any espresso drive-thru business with a great visible location. (500 cups per day is extraordinary.)
Independent coffee shops manage to sell 31% of espresso-based drinks, while the rest is brewed coffee.
I’ll skip a meal before I’ll skip coffee.
Well, along with matches, ammunition, and gasoline, coffee will be better than money if everything goes into the toilet.
The coffee in sweden is great. Must be why they drink so much.
I occasionally have a meal with my coffee.
“I’ll skip a meal before I’ll skip coffee.”
Agreed, a Latte is essentially a meal anyways. LOL!
Why has it become so hard to realize that Starbucks has been ailing since 2007 — well before the recession — and that their internal problems do not represent a problem for every other coffee pusher?
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