This was as noted in SBUX’s April 30, 2009 second quarter earnings call, where CFO Alstead described it as neither a price increase not a price decrease, and the result of consumer research.
It’s unknown yet whether SBUX will gain any average check or margin out of this, but likely not much. In most coffee shops the majority of the product mix is the regular, lower priced brewed coffee. SBUX is discounting more, via its reward card and regularly featured price point promotions, such as the recent $3.99 breakfast pairings and the $1.95 iced coffee.
SBUX was working with the following provided same store sales comparables components before the price change. View Entire Article Here.