Blog with Rob: Coffee and Merlot… to go?

You’ve got a 4:30pm networking appointment at your local Starbucks. You open their app, order your grande cappuccino and a glass of merlot for your colleague then head out to the café.

What, merlot? Mobile ordering? Starbucks? Before you get too excited, yes this is happening, but only in a select 152 stores in Portland.  For now, the trial run includes adding beer, wine, and evening snacks to thousands of domestic cafes as well as widening lunch offerings. As their success with the program continues to increase the stores’ output and enhance the customer service experience, you’ll see this spread to Starbucks locations across the country in 2015.

Personally, I find my local Huntington Starbucks a convenient location for quick, late-afternoon meetings.  If they offered a local brew it would be hard for me to say no to a snack and a happy hour drink. With today’s young entrepreneurs often working out of shared space, I can see Starbucks’ expanded offerings being a considerable success.

If you see these changes happen in your local Starbucks, let me know what you think.