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k1ngsn0w t1_ja4zdms wrote

Reply to comment by ToughAd5010 in The price of a Starbucks Latte, by country by kavithatk

Honestly this chart is pretty misleading considering the current strength of the dollar and how much less popular Starbucks is in other countries. It's more of a novelty there so they can charge more. Starbucks is still ridiculously overpriced for what it is.

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No_Package_5067 t1_ja56z4j wrote

Starbucks is very popular all over the world. I've been to 10 countries all over the world in the past 10 years and have never seen an empty Starbucks

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[deleted] t1_ja5i1vy wrote

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menlyn t1_ja62q83 wrote

The US had about 15000 stores. China has 6000... notvquite 100 :1. Korea, Japan, UK and Canada have over 1000 stores each.

Maybe a novelty in some countries...but certainly not all.

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Tulkor t1_ja748r7 wrote

We don't have them at every corner, but every major trainstation, most shopping Centers and many touristy areas have one, if i want one it takes me like 15min walking/with public transport to get one in most areas im regularly at.

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lawfulkitten1 t1_ja740bq wrote

here in Tokyo at least there are like 10 different Starbucks-like local chains and they are all roughly the same price (i.e. expensive) so I think the point still applies, even if the stores aren't literally Starbucks branded. ordering coffee at a cafe here is fairly expensive.

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randomthad69 t1_ja5dwoy wrote

They mention it in the article but honestly its just clickbait when the diagram never shows what the ppp is per country that would be much more relevant on the chart

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Magmagan t1_ja5a9nl wrote

Or, how it seems to be cheaper in other countries, like Brazil, but really isn't. PPP has to be taken into account. You can afford two US lattes at federal minimum wage, but can't even afford one in Brazil.

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k1ngsn0w t1_ja5ljiw wrote

Honestly I can't speak affirmatively on Brazil but in general I would really expect the prices to be lower in South America as that is generally where the beans come from. Plus, I'm sure the people who live there prefer local coffee as compared to corporare Starbucks.

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Magmagan t1_ja5ph89 wrote

No, Starbrucks has brand name, so that logic doesn't work. Similar to McD's or BK, they charge way too much for their burgers compared to other chains. And we produce a ton of beef.

Coffee isn't super cheap either and a lot of it is exported... Don't think that your average joe here can justify (or even cares for) arabica coffee at at least double the price of normal robusta. We consume a lot of coffee but we don't have a super refined taste most of the time.

Also, if the price of the latte were closer to the US average then demand would plummet. It's already marketed towards mid/high-mid class and even then it would be hard to justify spending like, 40 reais on just the coffee for two people.

So the price is lowered because PPP is a thing. People need to be able to afford the product. At the same time, people earn far less than the relative price difference would suggest, so the product is still considered a luxury to normal consumers.

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k1ngsn0w t1_ja5qyir wrote

Not sure where in Brazil you're from but I'm speaking mostly from an overhead cost perspective being that it doesn't require as much overhead to get the beans from x to y. Also, I agree that in the main cities of Brazil, the culture exists where people will pay a premium for American coffee (as sad as that is), but I know plenty of locals of Brazil who prefer their own coffee over Starbucks.

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Magmagan t1_ja5tw1x wrote

But then why would it be more expensive in Germany, for example? They are one of the largest exporters of coffee in the world.

I get your perspective but I think it's too simple when it comes to starbucks lattes. Operations cost isn't so prevalent if the product is considered a luxury good.

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thatgoddamnedcyclist t1_ja5c0le wrote

All of Nestlé is overpriced for what it is. If you buy from Nestlé, expect all corners to have been cut.

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estjol t1_ja7ypfx wrote

Stronger dollar would mean that keeping the price relatively the same in their local currency would reflect a lower price in dollars. So dollar being strong is not the reason why other countries are more expensive in terms of dollars, maybe in terms of their local currency the price can inflate.

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k1ngsn0w t1_ja80oo0 wrote

First: you're making an assumption on the conversion methods. Two: those assumptions are wrong.

I cbf to elaborate with you but wanted to clear the air that your methodology is wrong.

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