Demand Media, (2014) Young adults aged 18 to 24, total 40 percent of Starbucks’ sales. Starbucks positions itself as a place college students can hang out, study, write term papers and meet people. Starbucks appeals to this consumer directly through introducing technology as soon as it come available, focusing on social networking and actively cultivating a “cool” image. The young adult audience grows 4.6 percent each year.
Kids and teens are also a large part of Starbucks’ target audience. Together, customers age 13 to 17 accounts for just 2 percent of Starbucks’ sales, but most items for kids are purchased by the parents. Whether the focus is on the steamed milk that Starbucks’ baristas refer to as “babyccinos” or the sugary, caffeinated, whipped cream topped coffee drinks that are so popular with teenagers, kids and teens form a large part of Starbucks business. Kids go there with their parents; both mother and child leave with cup in hand. Teens meanwhile use Starbucks as a place to hang out with friends or study. Starbucks may not cater directly to kids (and risk criticism about the high calorie and caffeine content of some of its drinks) but it does make its products kid-friendly, offering special child sizes for instance. Renee O'Farrell, (2014)
Renee O'Farrell, (2014) Specialty coffee drinks account for around 75 percent of Starbucks’ sales, but an increasing amount of its business is centered on selling whole bean coffees and merchandise. Starbucks has made its coffees available for direct order online, in supermarkets and offered select food service outlets the chance to carry Starbucks’ family of coffee, including Starbucks brand, Seattle’s Best and Starbucks VIA. These products give consumers a chance to have the “Starbucks’ experience” at home, and it is an area that Starbucks is pushing.