Java Jolt

Today’s Wall Street Journal reports that Starbucks “net income fell 28 percent during the second fiscal quarter,” leading the company to reduce the number of stores it will open in the coming years. This link to a Financial Post story (since I don’t have an online Wall Street Journal subscription and can’t provide a link to the story I’ve mentioned above) shows that though net income is down, it still was $108.7 million for this coffee giant.

That’s why it’s not all “don’t cry for me Cafe Estima (blend)” for Starbucks. The company currently has 1,800 locations in the U.S. alone and a robust business overseas. (Full disclosure: I’ve been a spokesperson for Starbucks in the past, during national media tours.)

But you just have to wonder if the green movement, coupled with the impending recession, has had something to do with customers turning elsewhere for their java jolt. Here’s some food for thought on that topic:

* A person who brews her own large cup of coffee at home instead of ordering a tall regular coffee at Starbucks, costing about $2.05 before work each day, saves, on average, about $533 a year. And that’s assuming that she doesn’t choose any of the fancy-schmancy lattes or whatever that cost upwards of $3.

* If you can’t give up your Starbucks habit but want to avoid using disposable cups, bringing your own mug for coffee each day will allow you not to throw out something like 260 cups in a year. (I wonder how tall a tower of 260 cups would be?) Starbucks offers a discount to those who come in toting their own mugs.

* Unless you live within walking distance of a Starbucks, which is likely possible for most New Yorkers, since there are 171 Starbucks in Manhattan (see how one filmmaker attempted to visit all of them in a single, 24-hour period), you have to drive to it. If you cut out that trip each morning (assuming that it’s not on your way to work), you’ll not only save money on the coffee you didn’t buy but also on the fuel you won’t have to use.

* Speaking of fuel, coffee is more expensive than gas. Where I live a gallon of gas costs $3.69. A Starbucks medium sized, er, venti latte, is about $4. But that’s $4 for 16 ounces. To get a gallon, I’ve got to get up to 128 ounces (16 oz. X 4=128) , which means I have to multiply $4 by 8, giving me a $32/gallon coffee habit. No thanks.

Perhaps Starbucks’ allure has finally started to wane. I mean, New York magazine recently asked a panel of “coffee geeks” what they would do to fix Starbucks. Nonetheless, I’ll have to admit that if I’m traveling and desperately need a cup of coffee in the airport, I’m going to head over to Starbucks because of the convenience and reliability factor.

ADDENDUM: On May 2, 2008, Wawa, the local coffee purveyor and convenience store in my area, announced that it was raising coffee prices by $.06. Doesn’t sound like much, but considering that Wawa says it sells 165 million cups of coffee each year, that $.06 is going to add up to an extra $9.9 million in Wawa’s coffers.