In China, Starbucks punches back at startup rival with online ordering

Stung by its fast-growing startup rival, Starbucks is now rolling out mobile ordering in China so that its customers can avoid queuing and having to talk to the cashier.

Dubbed Starbucks Now, the China-only feature lets punters order drinks and food, pay cashlessly, get an estimated pickup time, and select a nearby store for pickup. On arrival at the store, the order will be ready and waiting.

Photo credit: Connie Ma

While Starbucks China CEO Belinda Wong described the feature in a press release as “innovative,” the company is lagging behind its new rival, Luckin Coffee, which started doing this early 2018.

China’s Luckin Coffee has highly automated stores with no cashiers – just one or two baristas plus a crew of deliverymen. All ordering is done within Luckin’s app. Offering in-store pickups or deliveries, its stores are very different to Starbucks’ in having little to no seating.

Photo credit: Luckin

Since launching in January 2018, Luckin has grown to around 2,300 outlets across the country and hit a valuation of US$4 billion in its recent IPO.

Starbucks’ mobile ordering is launching at 300 select stores in Beijing and Shanghai, and requires Starbucks’ app plus signing up for the Starbucks Rewards loyalty program. There are plans to introduce the feature across its other 3,000-plus China locations “over the next year,” said the company.