Starbucks stock price delivered a total return of 170% over the past five years. That’s thanks to the opening of new stores and increased sales at the existing ones. The future of the company doesn’t seem disappointing either with plans of expansion in China and digital initiatives.
Even though the US has been the largest market for Starbucks along with being the most profitable one as well, the growth in the market is little. The company is thus looking at other markets – China to be specific- for its primary growth driver. The market in China remains unexplored with most of its 1.4 billion population drinking tea.
With the view that China grows to a larger market than the US market, Starbucks is opening restaurants in the country at a pace considered aggressive. We’re talking 600 stores annually or one store every 15 hours. The company, however, faces tough competition in the Chinese market from Luckin Coffee which is the country’s famous coffee chain.
Who Could Profit From Starbucks Growth?
There’s no question about it when companies like this grow, there’s likely opportunity for others to capitalize. But when it comes to coffee, besides the bean growers, who might benefit from growth like this? Well, think about how you get your coffee.
Do you go to Starbucks every day or….by chance…do you get delivery? Chances are you’re like me and have yours delivered. Where many of the on-demand delivery companies like DoorDash or Postmates aren’t currently public, there are some companies to pay attention to.
Uber, unfortunately, may be on the backburner for now. The company has leveraged multiple operating arms and recent financials weren’t promising. Companies that “stay in their lane” have become a focus. Grubhub (GRUB) for example, has held a near 100% increase in share price from just 5 years ago. At one point, GrubHub stock price skyrocketed to highs of nearly $150 a share.
Special Delivery
But that was then and this is now. Other companies are taking a lean approach while also extending their businesses to benefit from the likes of Amazon and others. ParcelPal Technology (PTNYF) (PKG) is one of these companies and it’s trading at a fraction of GRUB, UBER, and other delivery stocks.
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ParcelPal (PTNYF) (PKG) created an on-demand marketplace where customers can shop for anything from food to clothes. There is no more waiting in line for lunch or rushing to the store after work to grab your clothes. With ParcelPal on-demand, customers simply shop from the app, choose the items they want, and pay.
As the marijuana industry evolves, new opportunities have come about. One of the bigger deals closed in 2019 was between ParcelPal (PTNYF) (PKG) and Yield Growth! The deals form an alliance between the two companies for same-day and on-demand delivery, sale, of hemp-based cosmetics from Yield Growth’s subsidiary Urban Juve in Canada.
Urban Juve hemp products currently sell in over 90 locations including well-known pharmacy chains across North America, with a plan to expand that to 130 retail outlets in the near future.
Customers will be able to track their purchase in real-time and have their product delivered to any location they specify. As time and regulations allow, ParcelPal’s cannabis network will continue to grow, with the goal of capturing a major piece of Canada’s $5.2 B legal cannabis market.
Does The Next Half Decade Map Out Profitably For Starbucks?
Growth like this could open opportunities for continued success for not only Starbucks but the ancillary companies that can take advantage of this growth. By the end of Q3, the total number of Starbucks’ stores in China reported an increase of 16% year-over-year to 3,900 locations, while the comparable store-sales increased by 6%.
These figures imply the company’s expansion of store base as well as consistent sales production in the existing ones. Forecasts suggest that there would be more 3,000 new stores in China by the next five years, provided things continue to go as smoothly.
The digital initiatives taken by Starbucks are also proving to e quite profitable. In Q3, the active members for the company’s reward program in the US increased 14% year-over-year to 17.2 million members. The company’s digital loyalty program is also helping boost the sales not only in the US but also in China which now has active rewards members to the count of 9 million. The 9 million members are a year-over-year increase of 36%.
The coffee giant further expanded its partnership with Uber Eats with the aim of rolling out delivery throughout the US. For delivery services in China, the company has a partnership with Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba that has successfully covered 2,900 of Starbucks’ stores across 80 cities in the country. The deliver sales are reported to contribute 6% of the company’s total sales in China in Q3 andy the figure is set to rise in the future.