Starbucks to sell single-cup machines, challenging Keurig
Starbucks Corp.says it plans to sell a single-cup coffee machine for consumers to brew coffee and espresso at home, entering a market long dominated by Keurig Inc.
The Seattle-based coffee chain says it will start selling the Verismo machines this fall. It has not yet released pricing for the Verismo.
Starbucks first entered the single-serve coffee market with its Via Ready Brew instant coffee in 2009, and it launched its K-cup packs for Keurig single-cup machines in November.
The new machines will make espresso drinks as well as brewed coffee.
Starbucks Chief Executive Howard Schultz has said in the past that the company’s packaged-goods business could one day rival its retail business.
“The premium single-cup segment is the fastest-growing business withing the global coffee industry,” Schultz said in a statement. “We have long believed that the biggest prize within the segment is a high-pressure system that would give us the opportunity to deliver Starbucks-quality espresso beverages at home and at work for customers who desire the Starbucks espresso experience outside our stores.”
Starbucks will sell the Verismo online and at select retail stores as well as specialty retailers across the United States, Canada and select international markets.
Shares of Starbucks were up more than 2% in early trading Friday.
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