UNITED STATES
Plans for opening as many as 1,000 Starbucks Reserve retail premium coffee locations appear to be scaled back. Recent published reports indicate company c.e.o. Kevin Johnson is not as supportive of the idea as his predecessor, Howard Schultz.
Speaking recently with The Wall Street Journal, Johnson called the 1,000-store plan “aspirational” and said there only are plans for six to 10 U.S. Reserve outlets to test the concept. One Reserve-branded store exists inside the company’s headquarters in Seattle.
In explaining the company’s growth plans during a December investor conference, according to reports, Starbucks officials did not discuss the Reserve brand instead describing plans for sales growth in existing traditional Starbucks shops, Starbucks expansion in China and the introduction of delivery service in both China and the United States.