Analysis on the Development Strategy of Starbucks' Layout in Third and Fourth Tier Cities in China

Abstract

Recent surveys found that the stores of Starbucks are mostly located in first and second tier cities in China and its objective customers are high income earners. However, in its 2025 expansion plan, the main objective of Starbucks is to enter low tier cities in China due to the high consumption potential in those cities. In order to help Starbucks achieve its plan, this paper will use the SWOT model to analysis internal strength and weakness, external opportunities and threats of Starbucks. The paper found that Starbucks has high user viscosity, strong monopoly power and financial capacity. Besides, the economic conditions in low tier cities are also beneficial to Starbucks such as low cost on daily life bringing out higher level of disposable income and increasing demand for coffee. In the contrast, we found that Starbucks has several problems such as inefficient chain of command, cost pressure due to large investment on digital technology and poor product differentiation. Whats worse, there is fierce battle among other brands and undeveloped consumption concept in the low tier cities. According to the analysis above, we suggest that Starbucks should adopt some strategies such as price discrimination strategy, making product differentiation, increasing investment in digitization and new retail, enhancing the brand influence, seeking for new suppliers with lower prices, shutting down underperforming stores and making improvement on quality of product, service and environment.