18 Apr Papro Wine Cellars and Consulting Weighs in on Starbucks Now Serving Wine in Toronto Locations
Toronto, Canada, April 18, 2016 – Papro Wine Cellars and Consulting (www.PaproWineCellars.ca), an award-winning company specializing in wine cellar consultation and design, is weighing in on Starbucks introducing wine into select Toronto locations.
Earlier this month, popular coffee house Starbucks started serving wine in three of its Toronto locations. This comes as the upscale cafe tries to separate itself from other coffee house offerings like McDonald’s McCafé and Canadian staple Tim Hortons. (Source: Strauss, M., “New brew: Starbucks Canada to offer beer, wine,” The Globe and Mail web site, April 1, 2016; http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/new-brew-starbucks-canada-to-test-evening-beer-wine-sales/article29492197/.)
“Starbucks really seems to be gambling on this new wave of wine culture that this generation has taken to,” says Steve Papadimitriou, founder of Papro Wine Cellars and Consulting. “This generation of wine drinkers are definitely very social. For Starbucks, adding wine to their menu could pay off big time and it certainly allows them to stand out from their competitors.”
The inclusion of wine also comes with shareable platters as part of an after 2:00 p.m. menu. The new offerings, which also includes craft beer, is expected to dramatically increase evening sales at Starbucks. As it stands right now, the lowest percentage of traffic and sales happens during the evening hours.
“It just makes sense for a business to look for ways to improve its bottom line,” Papadimitriou says. “They’ve obviously done their research and have decided that introducing wine along with an evening menu would help encourage more customers during those slower hours.”
Prices for a glass of Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio are listed at about $13.00. Experts say this new offering of wine and a shareable menu should play well with Millennials. There have been no reports of any “rowdy” behaviour in U.S. Starbucks locations that have already made wine available.
Starbucks plans to extend its alcohol offering to locations all across Canada. Right now, locations at 3079 Bloor Street West, 446 Spadina Road, and 1749 Avenue Road are the only three Toronto locations with these new menu additions.
Papro Wine Cellars and Consulting prides itself on turning ordinary spaces into extraordinary wine cellars. More information about the company’s award-winning design and wine cellar installation services can be found at www.PaproWineCellars.ca.