Starbucks yesterday rolled out a new add-on that turns any of its beverages into an energy drink.
As if regular coffee doesn't have enough zoom in its own right.
Even so, the coffee giant seems to think a combination of B-vitamins, guarana and ginseng is just the thing to increase your get-up-and-go . . . not to mention push your affinity for Starbucks' products to a whole new level. The company's recently suffered declining foot traffic, and this, along with a new daily roast and some other initiatives, are its countermeasures.
So, how does the "+ energy" initiative add up? Is it worth the 50 cents? And how does it change your typical SBUX experience?
I purchased and drank one this morning. I didn't have many expectations--while a coffee fanatic I generally find Starbucks' to be decent. Accordingly, I was confident in my ability to keep an open mind, even after discovering that adding said "energy" involves your barista cutting open a tiny silvery/mylar-looking packet and squeezing it into whatever you order.
Initial impressions of Starbucks' Pike Place Coffee ("grande", or medium, if you prefer) "+ energy" are as follows:
• According to the staff, the add-in is flavorless. Perhaps it is, when mixing it into one of the blended, icy, calorie-laden concoctions (the "kitchen sink" approach to coffee). In this morning's regular ol' cuppa joe, I am fairly confident I detected an added, fruit-like acridity. Either that, or the Pike's Place roast is just unpleasant. A definite minus, whether or not it was due to the "plus."
• That extra 50 cents pushes the price of a pre-work ritual to more than two bucks. Fifty cents times five workdays a week = a whole extra cup of coffee one can purchase. That's poor multiplication. (Side note for the thrifty: competitor Dunkin' Donuts is having its "Free Iced Coffee Day" tomorrow.)
• Two hours later, I'll attest--that energy works. Somewhat uncomfortably so--I'm awake, I'm flying, I've got the shakes. Unsteady fingers are translating to untimely typos--dividing my productivity by at least 1.3.
• In sum, it's not so great.
Is it fair to have a snap judgment like this on a new product? Well, yes and no -- one sampling is likely all many consumers will give it; if it's exceedingly unpleasant, who's going to come back for more? Let alone become addicted?
And, heck . . . just like in math class, I showed my work.
