I find thoughts of the American Consumer (AC) cutting back hysterical. When's the last time you ever saw the AC deny themselves en masse? Americans consume and will keep doing so. McCafe will kill Starbucks like McPizza killed Domino's. McD's tries lots of ideas, few of them work. Their core compentency is a cheap burger and fries fast. That's it. They should stick to what works and forget about trying to be all things to all people. If you want some REAL insight, read Fast Food Nation, or watch Fast Food Nation the movie, or Supersize Me.
McDonald's coffee bars to take on Starbucks
- Thread starter S2007S
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No doubt, their slogan is "size matters." Given its thickness and size, they should consider adding a CD player to it.Quote from atticus:
thanks. no, don't own it yet, it's on the list!
surf
So I walked past a McDonald's last week and saw that it was unmistakenly decorated like a Starbucks.
If this type of copying continues Starbucks will probably go down due to brand devaluation. If a fast food brand with lower-middle class connotations such as McDonald's is able to succesfully copy Starbuck's format the yuppies that usually frequent the over-priced coffeeshop will start to shun it. I can see what Schultz is implying when he speaks of the commoditization of his brand.
If this type of copying continues Starbucks will probably go down due to brand devaluation. If a fast food brand with lower-middle class connotations such as McDonald's is able to succesfully copy Starbuck's format the yuppies that usually frequent the over-priced coffeeshop will start to shun it. I can see what Schultz is implying when he speaks of the commoditization of his brand.
When you open as many new stores as these guys have in the past 5-7 years, you "commoditize" your own brand. These guys set up shop in supermarkets, airports, strip malls, etc, etc. They knew they had to bring in middle America to keep the growth story working.
Starbuck's is at the same juncture where McDonald's was in the 1980's. Most commentators predicted an end to the growth story citing market saturation as a cause. McDonald's solved this by expending overseas and refocusing on prime real-estate. Starbuck's still has plenty of room to grow in Europe. There is no Starbuck's in the city in The Netherlands where I live yet, though all of my friends are familiar with the brand through encounters in other European cities.
I've been to a Starbucks only twice, in Barcelona and in Berlin but the brand and the feel of the place is easily recognized. If anything, the opening of so many stores helped the Starbucks brand. It made drinking coffee pretty much synonymous with going to a Starbucks because there was always one just around the corner.
The real threat to the growth story is the copying of the Starbucks feel by franchises with lower perceived brand values. As I said, I've only been to a Starbucks twice, but walking past my local McDonald's I was able to immediately recognize the format they copied from Starbucks. If this trend continues the Starbuck's feel will be muddled down to such an extent that the brand will loose it's value.
Starbucks should be a little nervous . . . their breakfast selections are more expensive than McDonald's. McD's will take the customers away that want a cheap Egg McMuffin to go along with their coffee. I haven't seen or heard any word about how McD's will handle their drive-thrus . . . it seems that it will double their drive-thru business.
Why is their coffee considered worth the hefty premium.. maybe those of you who buy can answer this? Do they grow their own special beans
I don't eat @ McDee's but i have had their coffee.. it's as good (or worse) as any other.. pay a little attention to the "brew process" and your 90% there imo
I don't eat @ McDee's but i have had their coffee.. it's as good (or worse) as any other.. pay a little attention to the "brew process" and your 90% there imo
Quote from armoured saint:
Why is their coffee considered worth the hefty premium.. maybe those of you who buy can answer this? Do they grow their own special beans
Brand value. It's what brands are all about, charging premiums. A type brands charge A type premiums.
The people in this thread who compare the prices at Starbucks to what their competitors charge don't understand this. Price competition is an issue when talking about discount stores, not when talking about high class brands. It's cheaper to completely renew the Starbucks brand then to enter into direct price competition.
Price competition will kill profit margins and will be the beginning of the end. I think Schultz knows this since he's talking about the danger of the commoditization of his brand.