MILAN – Starbucks is planning to raise prices for certain coffee beverages this week, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Beginning Tuesday, some beverages in Starbucks U.S. company-operated stores will increase by between five cents and 20 cents.
A 20-ounce, venti-sized cup of brewed coffee, for example, will cost $2.35, an increase of either 10 cents or 15 cents. The price change will vary depending on different areas of the country.
The price for Starbucks-branded ground and whole-bean coffees sold in grocery, drug and mass retail stores will increase by about 8 percent on average, starting July 21.
The move comes just weeks after J.M. Smucker Co raised list prices of its well-known Folgers and Dunkin’ Donuts brands, for the first time since 2011 due to soaring green coffee costs.
However, the latest hikes don’t seem to be driven purely by the surging bean costs, since Starbucks has said it already locked in its coffee contracts for the rest of this fiscal year and much of the next.
In an email Friday, Starbucks spokesman Jim Olson noted that many factors go into pricing decisions, including “competitive dynamics” and the company’s “cost structure,” which he said includes costs for a variety of ingredients, as well as materials, labour and occupancy costs.
Dunkin’ Brand Group Inc also has said it expects “modest increases in coffee prices” at its Dunkin’ Donuts restaurants.
