What Is Starbucks’ Market Share? A Strategic Analysis

What is Starbucksmarket share in the US in 2022? Read on to discover its expansion strategy, competitors, and what makes the brand popular.

What is Starbucks' market share?
Starbucks is the most famous coffee cooperation the world has ever seen

With over 34,000 stores worldwide, 8,947 company-operated, and 6,497 licensed stores in the US alone (as of 2022), Starbucks is the most famous coffee cooperation the world has ever seen.

Targeting the higher end of the market spectrum, Starbucks is a premier roaster and coffee retailer focusing on high beverage quality and social sustainability. The coffee giant was founded in 1971 in Seattle, WA., and is still going strong, with 182,000 employees enlisted across 62 countries.

With such a huge impact on the economy, Starbucks accounted for 36.7% market share in the United States alone, competing with other heavyweights such as Dunkin’ Donuts and McCafé.

How Many Starbucks Are There Worldwide?

According to Business Insider, the number of Starbucks stores worldwide reached 34,317 locations in 2022. Despite the global pandemic, the giant is still looking to expand aggressively after seeing a decline in 2009 when the global financial crisis happened.

Market share is defined by the percentage of a certain market earned by an individual company, which can be measured by either units or revenue. In the case of Starbucks, in 2020, Starbucks still maintained the highest share of the US coffee market measured by the number of opened stores. It accounted for 40 percent of the market share with 15,337 stores even though the company was pulling back by closing about 600 stores in its home nation.

The decline in the number of operated locations is part of the brand’s tactics to refocus on its asset base. In the future, you will see more Starbucks opened in the urban areas through take-out, drive-thru units, and mobile orders.

In the same year of 2020, Starbucks was followed by one of its significant competitors, Dunkin, with approximately nine thousand stores. According to a report by Nithin Geereddy about the Strategic Analysis of Starbucks Corporation, the retail coffee and snacks store industry in the US is forecasted to grow at an annualized rate of 3.9% in the next five years. With Starbucks and Dunkin being the top two brands in their home nation, both account for over 60% of the market share.

You’ll enjoy our round-up of the best Starbucks snacks if you love Starbucks.

Who Is Starbucks’ Biggest Competitor?

Dunkin and McCafé are two of their biggest competitors on a worldwide scale. Starbucks has also been sharing its customers with Tim Hortons, Folgers, Caffè Nero, Costa Coffee, and Maxwell House in the US alone. Smaller, locally owned businesses such as Peet’s Coffee in the San Francisco Bay area also share the market’s pie.

The same situation happened to Starbucks when the giant entered Vietnam and Australia. Even today, Starbucks is still struggling to compete with SMEs, even brand-less businesses, due to the failure in menu engineering. 

Let’s take Vietnam, for instance. The Vietnamese coffee industry has been going strong ever since the French introduced the bitter yet aromatic beans to the Central Highlands. Their traditional Vietnamese coffee flavor inclines toward a strong, rich, and mouthful feel, while Starbucks focuses on the likes of flat whites and lattes.

How Is Starbucks Different From Its Competitors?

Starbucks employees laughing while some are holding Starbucks mug
Starbucks is still a beloved coffee brand, thanks to its successful branding and marketing tactics

Despite the surge in intense competition, Starbucks is still a beloved coffee brand, thanks to its successful branding and marketing tactics. Five significant strategies define its success and popularity.

The Starbucks Experience

According to its former CEO, Howard Schultz, a coffee house is not just a place to satisfy people’s craving for a coffee fix every morning. Starbucks is designed to be a Third Place, a homey get-together where customers can hang out, relax, work, and study.

Therefore, each location is customized to be a welcoming concept where customers can spend hours enjoying the best specialty coffee, food, and dessert rather than a takeaway. Starbucks has also introduced a policy where everyone can share the atmosphere without purchasing anything.

Specialty Coffee And Quality Products

Every beverage you see on the menu is carefully curated by a team of in-house experts using game-changing recipes and sustainable ingredients. Despite the higher price, customers are still happy with their investment in something premium and tasty, knowing that their coffee is sourced from the best-quality Arabica beans from the Swiss-made Mastrena espresso machines.

Here are the best Starbucks’ drinks to try. 

Innovative Technology

Technology has come a long way. The booming scene of data and information has helped Starbucks provide an even better experience for its loyal customers. For instance, the Starbucks Rewards loyalty program allows customers to receive free coffee and products by collecting “stars” online or using their specially designed mobile app.

Social Responsibility

By considering people, planet, and social issues, Starbucks is ahead of the crowd with its sustained competitive advantages. For the past decade, the coffee house has designed numerous policies targeting ethical products sourcing for their coffee, tea, and coca.

Staying in line with the beverage development, the brand also supports its partnered farmers and local communities. By going against harmful commercial strategies in exchange for lower input costs to focus on ethical alternatives, Starbucks has provided a beloved brand image in the eyes of coffee lovers worldwide.

Long-Term Investment In Its ‘Partners’

two Starbucks employees working cheerfully
Working for Starbucks, the staff doesn’t go by the name “employees” but “partners.”

Prioritizing employees is the smartest way to improve reputation and sustainable growth. Starbucks knows that, and its employees know that. 

Working for Starbucks, the staff doesn’t go by the name “employees” but “partners.” Plus, they can also receive stock options as part of their benefits.

Competitive wages and benefits are carefully selected to provide the staff with a perfect workplace. Paid leave, excellent health care, professional training, and even college tuition are provided to allow the teams to grow.

Author

  • Oanh Nguyen

    Born and raised by a traditional mama-barista, Oanh is a typical Viet coffee aficionado who would spend her entire precious Sunday showing you how to categorize coffee beans just by the looks and smells. She enjoys writing about everything drinks-related while sipping her favorite rosebud tea. Find Oanh on LinkedIn.