SEATTLE, Washington, June 6 After launching a premium juice bar this year, coffee giant Starbucks has announced that its acquired a French-style bakery brand that will have croissants, pastries, loaves and breads line store shelves in the US.
According to a blog post by Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, the addition of fresh, French-style baked goods was made in response to consumer demand for European-style pastries, one of the most popular requests on the public forum MyStarbucksIdea.com, which invites consumers to submit ideas and suggestions.
La Boulange, founded by French baker Pascal Rigo 13 years ago, is in 19 locations across the Bay Area and creates breads, pastries and croissants from scratch, sourced with European-style butter and locally sourced products.
Last year, Starbucks acquired California-based juice company Evolution Fresh, branching out into the premium juice bar market. Earlier this spring, they also launched a new range of ready-to-drink sparkling energy drinks made with fruit juice and green coffee extract called Refreshers.
The venture speaks to a larger Starbucks strategy away from coffee-based products: the companys sustainability chef has long been sounding the alarm on dwindling coffee supplies due to climate change and, specifically, the threat to the Arabica bean.
Meanwhile, in the quest to conquer the coveted Asian market, Starbucks will go head to head with US-based chain Dunkin Donuts, which announced plans to open 100 stores in India ov! er the n ext five years. Starbucks is due to open later this year. Relaxnews
No comments:
Post a Comment