In a joint project with Volvo, the pair will be working together to build out a charging network for customers while they grab their coffee.
Say goodbye to gas stations, say hello to — Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX)? Charging up minds in the morning wasn’t enough for the international coffee house. Now the company wants to charge your car too.
Starbucks’ charging stations
The initial plan is to install 60 Volvo-branded charging stations at 15 Starbucks locations from Denver to Seattle for testing. If successful, however, this has the potential to lead to a national rollout. Starbucks has already made arrangements as part of its ‘Greener Store’ portfolio to expand its use of solar power, this would just be the next iteration.
There are a total of six and a half thousand individual Starbucks stores in the U.S. alone. With a little cut of every transaction making its way back into the coffee giant’s pocket for each charge, you can see why this could be extremely profitable.
Is this good for Starbucks investors?
There isn’t much downside to the decision. For one, this is just a test to feel out usage and adoption, and see how the company can optimize future usage and scalability, should it decide to pursue the market long-term. Secondly, it acts favorably towards Starbucks’ sustainability efforts too, which prioritizes decarbonization through 2030 and beyond.
How long will it take to charge at Starbucks?
The estimated charge time is between 20 to 40 minutes for ChargePoint’s Express 100. Another plus for Starbucks — you’ll probably end up wandering over to buy a coffee.
While the technology isn’t perfected just yet, it’s still in the early stages, and with the push towards all-electric vehicles accelerating faster than ever, we’ll see further improvements over time. It’s becoming more apparent Tesla won’t have the monopoly it wanted with its Supercharger network — and more importantly, those with real estate like Starbucks could stand to benefit considerably.