Starbucks testing big change to speed up morning routines | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

Starbucks wants to make your morning routine easier.

In a recent blog post, Aaron Koransky, Starbucks senior vice president of US licensed stores, said the company is testing new ordering channels at licensed coffeehouses with the goal of cutting down on waiting times and improving customer experience.

“Whether someone is grabbing coffee on their commute, at the airport, inside a hospital, at a hotel, or on a business or university campus, they expect the same unmistakable Starbucks experience – the same quality, care and handoff,” Koransky said.

“Our responsibility is to deliver that experience seamlessly, wherever Starbucks shows up and however customers choose to order.” 

Starbucks is rethinking licensed stores

Starbucks has more than 7,200 licensed stores in North America, and an additional 12,000 licensed stores worldwide, according to a recent SEC filing.

Operated by outside partners, these coffeehouses are located inside other businesses, ranging from airports to arenas.

With so many external factors impacting how they run, how much traffic they get, and the challenges they face, these licensed locations often feel appreciably different from company-owned stores.

Recently, Starbucks has made efforts to fix this customer experience gap.

“Over the past year, we’ve restructured how we operate this business – shifting from a primarily regional model to a segment-focused approach,” Koransky said. “Organizing around segments allows us to support licensees based on how their environments actually operate.”

“A Starbucks in a hospital, a grocery store or an airport face very different realities,” he continued. “This structure gives us clearer focus, more relevant support and a stronger foundation to grow in high-potential segments like travel, healthcare and campuses.”

Starbucks is expanding the number of ways diners can order at its licensed coffeehouses in an effort to streamline the customer experience.

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Starbucks is testing new ways to order

The new ordering channels are another way Starbucks is hoping to bridge the experience gap.

“As we look ahead, we plan to support these [licensed] locations differently – with technology that gives customers more ways to order Starbucks, while ensuring the same experience and handoff they know and trust,” Koransky said.

More specifically, the chain says it is testing ordering kiosks and pre-scheduling orders through the Starbucks app at high traffic locations. In the past, these perks have only been available at company-owned coffeehouses.

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The move “gives licensees more clarity and opportunity, gives customers greater consistency and gives Starbucks more ways to be part of the rhythms of their day,” Koransky said.

Starbucks did not clarify which licensed locations will be testing these new ordering methods first, or how quickly customers can expect to see them rolled out at all partner stores.

An increased focus on customer experience

In late 2024, after two years of declining sales and increasing customer complaints, Starbucks launched its turnaround plan, Back to Starbucks. The plan had several core pillars, including menu simplification, store redesigns, and “Green Apron Service,” or a focus on increasing customer satisfaction.

During the company’s most recent earnings call in February 2026, CEO Brian Niccol highlighted a few ways Green Apron Service has transformed company-owned stores, from decreased ticket times to a growing number of positive customer comments.

Niccol also told investors that the company was launching a sister initiative, the Grow program, to help licensed coffeehouses achieve similar results.

The program is “a simplified reporting system to evaluate, rank, and improve coffeehouse performance,” Niccol said.

“We’re measuring five key metrics that closely tie to comp growth and are within coffeehouse leaders’ control,” he continued. “While it’s only been a few months, leaders across our North America operations are already using the new report to help them better run their coffeehouses and take ownership of their action plans to improve performance.”

Starbucks is contending with rising coffee prices

Starbucks will need all the help it can get, with coffee prices surging to record highs.

Earlier this month, TheStreet’s Hillary Remy covered the record-setting spike. The average cost of a pound of ground coffee beans has shot up by 31% year-over-year, he reported, with no relief in sight.

Last October, Niccol told CBS News he couldn’t rule out raising the chain’s prices in 2026, although he saw it as a “last resort.”

“Pricing would be one of those things that we do as a last resort, and we do it very surgically,” Niccol told the outlet. “To say never, you know, I don’t think you can do that in this environment.”

Even if the company does raise prices over the next few months, Niccol is convinced the customer experience, enhanced by things like easy ordering opportunities, will keep people returning.

“What we hear from [customers] is they love the experience and they think it’s a great value proposition,” he told CBS News.

“And I think it’s really important that you give them a great experience so that it justifies why they chose to spend money with you.”

Current Starbucks prices

Starbucks prices can range dramatically based on add-ins, milk preferences, and item type, but as of March 2026 base prices for its most popular items range from $3.76 to $7.35. For a standard 12 oz., you can expect to pay:

Pike’s Place Roast: $3.76
Strawberry Acai Refresher: $5.17
Caffe Latte: $5.72
Cold Brew: $5.93
Iced Chai Latte: $6.80
Java Chip Frappuccino: $7.35 Source: Starbucks Reserve Only