Starbucks announced Tuesday the launch of a limited time Pairings Menu, which offers up a combination hot or iced coffee or tea with a croissant starring at $5, or a hot or iced coffee or tea with any savory breakfast sandwich starting at $6.
The promotion is available starting June 11 and is the first time that Starbucks has offered anything resembling a combo meal in recent memory. Starbucks’ new iced coffee blend is also available with the promotion. Additionally, if customers order a breakfast sandwich with double smoked bacon, Impossible breakfast meat, or additional customizations, there will be an upcharge.
With Starbucks’ recent disappointing second quarter, CEO Laxman Narasimhan said during the company’s last earnings call that Starbucks is struggling to appeal to cash-strapped customers, which has impacted traffic. Narasimhan said that Starbucks is planning to offer more digital in-app deals to lure customers back to the brand, and although this is not a digital-only promotion, it is clearly the first step Starbucks is taking to get back on the right track.
“More recently, what we are seeing is headwinds related to our customers, particularly our occasional customers, largely as it relates to the awareness of what we have and the perception of value,” Rachel Ruggeri, executive vice president and CFO of Starbucks, said during the recent Deutsch Bank global consumer conference. “It is going to take some time to strengthen those relationships, but I am very confident that as we continue to focus on relationships, particularly with our partners and our customers it will continue to differentiate us as we grow.”
Besides homing in on value –and particularly personalized discounts—Starbucks will also continue to ramp up menu innovation. The most recent product innovations include “swicy” limited time offer beverages with proprietary chili blend this spring, and the Summer Berry Refreshers with popping pearls last month.
Ruggeri said that even though Starbucks is focused on recovering traffic, particularly from the occasional customers, it will take “some time to fully recover” and results will start to be visible in Q3, Q4, and beyond.
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