A day after confirming plans to raise employee wages, Starbucks is increasing the prices on some of its drinks.
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Customers can expect an increase of 10 to 20 cents on select sizes of brewed coffee and 10 to 30 cents on espresso beverage and tea lattes, the company said.
In a letter, Schultz told employees that Starbucks is increasing the base pay for all “partners” and store managers at its company-owned United States locations by more than 5 percent and doubling the annual company stock award for employees who reach two years of continuous service, resulting in total compensation increases of between 5 and 15 percent.
Local coffee places, like Ladybug Latte in West Fargo, don’t pay much attention to what the big chains do.
Just a day after Starbucks Corp. unveiled a plan to raise wages in the US, the company said it has raised prices on many of its drinks. I have had a couple people complain, maybe I guess.
Is there a limit to how much you’ll pay for Starbucks coffee?
The company says in a statement that pricing in stores is “continually evaluated on a product-by-product and market-by-market basis in order to balance business needs”. The retailer will also double the annual stock award for some employees Starbucks said the combination of these changes will result in compensation increases between 8%-16%.
The range of wage increase depends on “geographic and market factors”, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz had said in a letter to employees.
The even better news is that those price increases seem to be going to good use, because the company plans to give raises to its USA baristas and managers this fall.
We also believe that there may be different costs for the same Starbucks drinks in different areas in one country, and of course overseas. The company announced on Tuesday that it made a “small price adjustment” in most US stores. A year ago the company raised prices between 5 and 20 cents.
The pay rise will come into affect from October, whereas the price increase is immediate.
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Schultz said the company will work with employees to make sure that they have the hours they need. Starbucks contends that the difference will be barely noticeable to consumers – about 1% added to every sale – and continues to emphasize the discounts consumers can receive with its newly revamped loyalty rewards program.
