Starbucks announced Wednesday it will be opening 1,500 cafes in the U.S. over the next five years, adding to its already expansive presence in the coffee shop arena.
Starbucks said in a statement it plans to boost the number of locations in its biggest market by about 13 percent by 2017. In the broader Americas region, the company plans to add a total of 3,000 new cafes by that time.
Starbucks also is planning to expand overseas, particularly in China, which is expected to surpass Canada as Starbucks' second-biggest market in the next two years. By that time, Starbucks says it will have 20,000 stores globally, up from about 18,000.
Meanwhile, the coffee giant said it will pay additional taxes in the UK in response to public pressure there to collect more taxes from multinational companies.
The continued U.S. sales growth will be fueled by the new products, such as Evolution premium juices and Via single-serve coffee packets. Looking forward, Starbucks is also looking to improve its food menu and is testing a new menu of baked goods from La Boulange, a small San Francisco-based chain it acquired earlier this year.
The new croissants, loaf cakes and other items will spread to about 2,500 cafes next year and go national sometime in 2014, Burrows said. The company says only about a third of customers currently buy food with their drinks.
Kris Engskov, managing director of Starbucks' UK unit, announced the move, saying that it would make the additional payments in 2013 and 2014, despite the fact that it is not yet profitable, according to CNN.
He said the unit would no longer claim tax deductions for royalties and other inter-company payments, including interest on inter-company loans, even though it is allowed to do so under UK tax law
