What's on Starbucks' best-sellers list?
As of August 2019, 50 percent of beverage orders were cold beverages
Starbucks’ sales are heating up in 2020 over its cold beverages.
For about a year and a half, the coffee giant's cold coffee platform was considered its primary growth engine, according to the company’s latest earnings report.
The growth of cold coffee sales occurred throughout all regions, which reflected the drinks broad appeal, a spokesperson for the company told FOX Business.
As of August 2019, 50 percent of beverage orders were cold beverages, up from 37 percent in 2013.
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For the first few months of the new year, the company capitalized on this growth by extending its cold brew platform and cold foam options with new seasonal beverages such as the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew and Irish Cream Cold Brew, both of which helped to drive traffic.
STARBUCKS TO ADD PLANT-BASED ITEMS AS PART OF ECO-FRIENDLY STRATEGY
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SBUX | STARBUCKS CORP. | 101.51 | -0.95 | -0.93% |
Additionally, other “fan favorites” from the past year included the Cloud Macchiato and Nitro Cold Bew, a spokesperson for Starbucks told FOX Business.
Take a look at the list of favorites according to Starbucks:
Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew
The pumpkin Cream Cold Brew, which mimics the companies iconic pumpkin spice lattes, was the first new pumpkin coffee beverage to join the Starbucks menu in 16 years. The limited-time drink is infused with vanilla syrup accompanied by pumpkin cream cold foam and a pumpkin spice topping.
Starbucks
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Cloud Macchiato
The macchiato was one of the first beverages to hit the Starbucks menu in the late 80s. Decades later, the café chain created a twist on the classic drink by making it available in two flavors. Customers can opt for the caramel and cinnamon cloud macchiato beverages, which feature whipped cold milk foam. Starbucks drew inspiration for the drinks from the leche merengada, or “meringue milk,” which is a summer drink from the cafés of Barcelona, Spain, according to a company press release.
Starbucks
Nitro Cold Brew
The company's nitro cold brew, available in a variety of options, is created by infusing their cold brew, which is slow-stepped for 20 hours, with nitrogen The nitrogen gives the coffee a frothy texture, Starbucks says.
Customers can for the regular nitro cold brew or they can order the drink with house-made vanilla sweet cream. They can also get the nitro cold brew with cascara-flavored cold foam, which has notes of dark brown sugar.
The company's nitro cold brew is also available in cans at grocery retailers and select Starbucks locations nationwide. They come in three flavors: Black, dark caramel and vanilla sweet cream.
Starbucks
Irish Cream Cold Brew
The Irish Cream Cold Brew was the company's newest holiday beverage. The beverage is made with Starbucks cold brew coffee and Irish cream syrup over ice, topped with a vanilla sweet cream cold foam. it houses flavors of cocoa and vanilla.
Inspiration for the drink came from product developer for Starbucks research and development, Erin Marinan.
Starbucks
As of December 2019, the company touted that cold beverages make up more than half of U.S. Starbucks beverage sales Cold foam, in particular, has been a key innovation for the company since 2018.
“Cold foam has been key for us from the innovation side of product development,” Marinan said. “It highlights our coffee craft with a great creamy texture and those beautiful layers. It’s adding a little bit of flavor in a way that’s unique to Starbucks.”