Starbucks Targets Its Haters With Seattle's Best Brand

Starbucks Targets Its Haters With Seattle's Best Brand

Starbucks knows that not everyone wants its coffee...but that isn't going to stop the chain from trying. Business Week reports that Seattle's Best Coffee, a small coffee brand that Starbucks purchased eight years ago, is growing "as a middle-market offering for folks who wouldn't be caught dead at a Starbucks."

Starbucks hopes to target those that drink generic coffee and "may be enticed by a premium brand minus Starbucks's class statement."

Rather than featuring "stereotypical coffee scenes" on the bags such as steaming mugs or cats in the window, the brand has five different brews, simply numbered from one ("for those who like to stare up at the blue sky, then drink it") to five ("courage and confidence to add to your own") in order of light to dark.

Seattle's Best currently has 325 cafes and is served in over 50,000 locations, a 12-fold increase from last year. The goal is to eventually reach a revenue of $1 billion and to get there expect to see Seattle's Best Coffee on board all of Delta's flights, on the Royal Caribbean cruise liner and at Subway and Burger King locations around the country.

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