Starbucks Delivery

In September 2018, Starbucks began a delivery service in Beijing and Shanghai in collaboration with e-commerce giant Alibaba. The new service is expected to cover 2,000 Starbucks stores in 30 cities nationwide. According to Starbucks’ financial report for the first three quarters of 2018, its Chinese market witnessed a drop in sales for the first time in nine years, the worst performance worldwide. Nevertheless, statistics from the International Coffee Organization show that the growth rate of the global coffee market was two percent in 2017, but Chinese consumption expanded by 15 percent. After explosive growth since its entry into the Chinese market, Starbucks faces new challenges in adapting to the Chinese business landscape, increasing its market share and competing with domestic brands.