Starbucks Fast Tracks Curbside Pickup In Face Of Expected Q3 Loss

As a result of the COVID-19 health crisis, Starbucks anticipates a loss of for its fiscal third quarter as it forecasts a loss in revenue of up to $3.2 billion, CNBC reported.

The quick-service coffee chain is predicting 64 cents to 79 cents in net loss for each share, and 55 cents to 70 cents in adjusted losses per share for the quarter concluding June 28.

The firm foresees that its China and U.S. same-store sales will decrease between 10 percent and 20 percent for the complete fiscal year. In May, same-store sales in the U.S. had plummeted by 43 percent as the company brought stores back online but changed hours as well as operations. Same-store sales in China, which began reopening earlier, dropped 21 percent in May compared to a 32 percent fall in same-store sales in April.

Approximately 95 percent of stores in the U.S. have reopened, and many of the shops that are still shuttered are in the vicinity of New York City. The coffee chain plans to bring approximately 300 new stores online in fiscal 2020, which is lower than the 600 previously forecasted. It also intends to close up to 400 restaurants owned by the company over the year-and-a-half to come.

The news comes as Starbucks unveiled plans to speed up change to its U.S. store portfolio, with a transformation that includes the growth of new Starbucks Pickup locations in markets such as Chicago, New York City, San Francisco and Seattle as well as “convenience-led enhancements” like drive-thru, curbside and walk-up windows in suburban locales.

The company also said it would freshen some store layouts, with the inclusion of bringing in a separate counter geared toward mobile orders at locations that have a high number of orders. Additionally, the company said that diners will have the ability to use curbside pickup from their vehicles in the near future.

Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson said in a post on the Starbucks website, “As we navigate through the COVID-19 crisis, we are accelerating our store transformation plans to address the realities of the current situation, while still providing a safe, familiar and convenient experience for our customers.”