Looks like Americans aren't quite willing to trade in their mocha Frappuccinos for matcha lattes just yet.
Starbucks announced Thursday that it will be shuttering all locations of Teavana, a tea-centric shop that currently boasts 379 locations throughout the country. The move will affect approximately 3,300 employees.
When Starbucks acquired Teavana in 2012, it seemed like a perfect marriage for the king of coffee chains to apply their successful model to the already successful Teavana brand. But it was an experiment that didn’t work. Across the country, food traffic many malls and food courts (where most Teavana locations are found) has been steadily declining. With the change, Starbucks is deciding to put their focus back to their original brand — pricey coffee beverages.
This is not new for Starbucks, they’ve also bought, but then shuttered, bakery chain La Boulange.
But the move to shutter Teavana doesn't mean Starbucks is abandoning tea entirely. The coffee chain will continue to offer a wide variety of hot tea options at most locations, as well as iced green, black and other flavored, blended tea beverages, such as Shaken Berry Sangria tea or the new Shaken Iced Pina Colada Tea Infusion, a “creamy and tropical beverage crafted with Teavana black tea, pineapple fruit and botanical blend, and coconut milk.”
"Innovation is key, and we continue to innovate around tea, just this month introducing Teavana Infusions, a flavor platform made from real fruits and botanicals that strengthens our lineup of healthy, less indulgent, premium cold beverages," CEO Kevin Johnson said during the company's Q3 earnings call Thursday, reiterating the company's commitment to offer non-coffee beverages.
"We have big plans for tea in Starbucks retail and CPG (consumer packaged goods) globally."
So, maybe it’s not that we’re not so into tea, it's just that we don't need a special spot for it? We’re all for the one-stop shop for all our beverage needs.