Starbucks officially announces its "Skinny" drinks

You read about them first on Starbucks Gossip, but now the company has released its news release on the drinks. It says: "If customers replace their daily tall Starbucks Vanilla Latte with Starbucks Skinny Vanilla Latte they would save 700 calories and 35 grams of fat per week. Swapping out a daily, tall Caffè Mocha (made with 2% milk and no whip) for a Skinny Mocha would save 550 calories and 30 grams of fat per week. ...The Skinny platform is one of the ways Starbucks is committed to meeting customers’ desire for healthier options in 2008." (Read the Starbucks news release)

Comments

[smalrus]

i know a lot of people will be happy about this... my girlfriend for one. as a weight watchers person, she's always looking for something low cal, and though the option was always there, asking for a "tall skinny vanilla latte" is a lot easier than a "tall sugar-free vanilla non-fat no-whip vanilla latte."

marketing ploy? yes, but a lot of you guys work there, shouldn't it make it easier for the customers who can't figure out the menu?

Except that Vanilla lattes don't come with whipped cream.

Yes, it *should* make things easier, but 99% of people that will order it that way will probably still change some modifier, like on a drink that DOES come with whip, they'll still want it even with non-fat milk. So then if we make it using the Skinny guidelines, they'll get pissed that there's no whip. So in reality, we'll still have to ask everyone, for our own sanity's sake, 'so no whip on that?' I don't really see it saving any time at all.

I really feel like that's very socially dangerous terminology to use and market. That's saying 'Skinny is good! Skinny is healthy!' With eating disorders on the rise, that's just not a good idea. It might seem like a little thing, but a company as larger and influential as Starbucks branding 'skinny' as a positive word is very unhealthy and socially irresponsible. Or am I overreacting?

[Hirayuki]

It's not like we haven't been able to order the exact same products for as long as all the ingredients have been around. It's just a new name, not a new way to "meet customers' desires for healthier options".

But I guess if you don't know the menu...bah, stick to a drip coffee. No calories, no fat, no WW points.

[deus]

I think skinny being a positive reference has been enforced and reinforced enough that Starbucks calling something skinny or not isn't going to make much of a difference.

As for calls of "social responsibility" until I see people concerned and active about things like stores selling thongs and panties with "juicy" and "cherry" to eight year olds, I'm just not gonna be so concerned over a coffee shop and how it names it's drinks. Priorities and all that

[Chel_NY]

hmm. well, other mom-n-pop coffee shops already use "skinny" lingo if you order something non-fat. so, to me it seems like jumping on a bandwagon. i personally don't consider the terminology dangerous, just kinda silly. but there's bound to be someone who is offended.

however, i'm still going to order my lattes and mochas with non-fat milk, but never with sugar-free syrup. (ick.) so, there will always be people those of us who are "high maintenance" and want something different.

[daibeticsbuxaddict]

Personally I love that sbux continues to introduce more SF options... as a diabetic this makes it nice when I want a little something in my brewed coffee or Americano.

I do dislike the skinny terminology though... for those of us who are watching our carb intake for a disease, I don't like that they are aiming it at those who think they are making a dieting decision rather than just a I really don't need all that sugar. Do we really need to call it something other than what it really is? Seems like a waste of marketing dollars to me.

[MusicGal]

I just don't see how it's going to catch on... I mean, it's going to confuse the new customers or those who only come in once in a while, and the "true blue" customers usually just like saying their drink the way they always do. It's not gonna fly.

[okiedokie]

I would rather they work on eliminating the transfat in their pastries and announcing that. Maybe even work on partnerships for fresh donut and pastry deliveries rather than frozen yucky junk.

Keep introducing more sugar free options but I see no need to add a marketing angle to it other than announcing Starbucks continues to add more sugar free options.

[Anonymous]

dumbest thing ever... absolutely the dumbest thing and will have no real effect on business.

the company is run by idiots now I guess...

[whoRUkidding]

From the news release “Milk is a nutrient-rich food that provides nine essential nutrients. Research shows milk drinkers have an overall healthier diet, with higher intakes of calcium and other important nutrients compared to non-milk drinkers,” said Ann Marie Krautheim, registered dietitian and spokesperson with the National Dairy Council. “With two out of three Americans failing to meet their daily calcium recommendations, ordering a Caffè Latte or Caffè Mocha and asking for it ‘skinny’ helps you save about 100 calories while getting one of the recommended three servings of dairy needed daily.”
~~~~~~~~~
I love the spin that this is a health drink! Hmmmn. Obviously someone has ignored the studies that caffeine INHIBITS the body's ability to absorb calcium.

I care about my bones too much to rely on *$ to be my daily source of dairy.

[Scriblerus]

It's not going to matter, as Musicgal pointed out. Regulars are likely going to ignore it, and it'll just confuse the n00bs.
Moreover, how do you all feel about the other thing we're launching, the customer-of-the-week thing?

[SSpiffy]

Drink your coffee the way the Gods intended, Black and Hot.

All these wussy drinks - BAH!

[Poppy]

Deus wrote: ...until I see people concerned and active about things like stores selling thongs and panties with "juicy" and "cherry" to eight year olds, I'm just not gonna be so concerned over a coffee shop...

I guess you're right. If the rest of society falls into a morass of cultural repugnancy, then it must be okay that Starbucks does so, too.

I love how the headline of the press release implies that "SKINNY" equals "FEELING GREAT."

My apologies to those of you (actually 2/3 of the US population) who are overweight. You must all feel like losers right about now.

Way to go, Starbucks.

Great to see that SBUX stock is down 2.5% today on the news.

[RD]

I think the "Skinny" drinks will taste like crap. I'll just stick to Starbucks coffee or consider getting soy lattes instead.

[Thomas]

This is good because I do trend chubby.

[Kathi Vieser Bianco, author of Everybody Lies]

Speaking as one of the 2/3 of Americans who aren't "skinny," I'm not insulted, but the use of the word "skinny" sounds very retro, like a harkening back to the '70s...wasn't "skinny" part of the title of the artificial sweetener in the movie "9 to 5"?

[seventysix [76]]

Moreover, how do you all feel about the other thing we're launching, the customer-of-the-week thing?

In my store, I'm the only one that keeps up with visual presentation standards (Freshly Brewed signage, Verismo magnetic chalkboard signage, Daily Offerings, etc.). Considering I'll be going back to school the week this promo starts (I go to school an hour away from my home/store and come back once every few weekends to work and see family), I can't see it being kept up at my store, sadly.

I would like to see it happen, though, and I think it's a great idea!

[Stacy]

I think one thing we can all agree on with all this skinny crap is this--

WORST IDEA EVER! (Actually it probably ties with warming stations)

[lux]

I hate the taste of all those sugar substitutes. I'll stay with my standard order, a grande non-fat no-whip mocha. Except now with that order, I'll probably be given the wrong mocha syrup and have to get the drink remade.

[Stacy]

Lux just brought up an interesting point that I haven't really seen addressed yet. If I walk in my store and order a nonfat, no-whip mocha, one the baristas thinks I mean sugar-free, and I take a sip of my drink, I can tell you what's going to happen-- everything that's in my stomach will end up on the floor. Anything that has a strong Splenda taste makes my stomach churn.

There is going to be a crapton of drink remaking going on because of the changing of the lingo.

[DisgruntledBarista]

As someone who already drinks nonfat, sugarfree beverages I can say that this particular promotion has got to be the biggest waste of time yet. Those wanting nonfat, sugarfree drink options probably are already aware of what Starbucks has to offer or they know how to go about finding out about them. (how hard is it to just ask after all?)

It'll be nothing new, on the other hand to customers who prefer 2% or whole and sugary syrups. I highly doubt a habitual white mocha drinker is going to go for the concept of a sugar free syrup in it's place.

And as for the sugar free mocha- I'm normally a fan of our sugar free syrups and I normally find them to be decent approximations of the regular version but what HAPPENED here? It doesn't even remotely resemble the flavor of chocolate! Seriously, how did this even get past the intial testing phases let alone into stores- biggest Starbucks syrup mistake to DATE.

[Ken]

The term "skinny" to refer to something low fat is not an invention of Starbucks, or even coffee shops for that matter. It is accually old diner lingo. Diners have thier own terms for a lot of things, much like starbucks does, and the term skinny was used to describe anything that was low fat, or none fat. The term has been around for 50+ plus years. We shouldn't be upset that Starbucks has decided to use it.

[JSMorley]

So are we going to start calling a Venti 6 pump Breve extra whip White Mocha a "Fatty Mocha"? The whole "skinny" thing is just stupid and announcing to the whole cafe that a customer is ordering a "skinny" drink only risks embarrassing them and alienating customers ordering other drinks. We won't be using it at our store.

[MetroPlexPerson]

KATHI VIESER BIANCO: Yes, the sweetener in "9 to 5" was Skinny 'n Sweet.

[seventysix [76]]

"So are we going to start calling a Venti 6 pump Breve extra whip White Mocha a "Fatty Mocha"?"

No silly, that'd be a Fatty White Mocha!

For real though. Skinny is now in the books and according to the workbook correction that was sent with the mailpack, drinks are to be called as Skinny as well. I may not agree with it, but it's a part of my job. Who's to say this will last forever?

Time will tell.

Best,
seventysix [76]

[BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL]

First, of all dairy products are not that healthy. Many dairy products use artificial growth hormones or other means that are highly questionable. Hasn't anybody ever heard of mad cow disease. They got it from eating other cows because cows were mixed into their feed. Also, non-fat milk is also higher in sugar, than whole and breve. This is very bad since sugar inhibits the immune system and can be converted into fat.
I should point out that other than humans, no other species continues to drink milk after infancy. Why humans continue to drink milk is beyond me.
Grande non-fat latte= 18g of sugar
Grande skinny cinnamon dolce latte= 18g of sugar
Grande soy sugar-free no whip cinnamon dolce latte= 17g of sugar
Finally, having a low calorie and low-fat beverage seems relatively meaningless, unless a person combined it with an overall healthy lifestyle that includes physical exercise. Having all the skinny drinks in the world will not help your cardiovascular system maintain a healthy state. Physical fitness is the result of a combination of a good diet and exercise. Walking or running for even 20 minutes a day, 3 times a week will greatly improve your fitness.

BOSTON STARBUCKS REBEL
PRIMUS INTER PARES
STARBUCKS REBEL ALLIANCE
AIM SN: BOSTONSTARREBEL

[Sbuxboy]

A zero-sum gain, and a severe lack of creativity from those in R&D and marketing. If this is the best they can do this company is in serious trouble.

Time to stop my SIP contribution!

Oh, and how many partners have cringed at the sight of a new partner writing VL for vanilla latte in the box. SKVL couldn't be good for training.

[Nick]

!GOSH! most folks are so afraid of change! If you are truly THAT dissatisfied with the products we are serving, then please find another job. If you want ultimate job satisfaction, sell a product that you love and are proud of. If Starbucks sugar-free syrups and breakfast sandwiches and merchandise ain't it, find another company and product. *SIGH*

[Mia]

I know of several employees in my area who dislike the whole new "skinny" drink line. It is plain and simple not a good idea. And as it has already been mentioned, there are some of us out there who can not tolerate anything with artificial sweetener in it. I don't think this will be a campaign that will last. Plus the term "skinny" can have negative connotations to it.

[Darleen]

dumbest thing ever... absolutely the dumbest thing and will have no real effect on business.

the company is run by idiots now I guess...

Now anonymous, if you know me at all you know I'm gonna jump on this one. :) What about dealing with ambiguity? What is wrong with this company implementing new drink concepts? I agree whole heartedly with daibeticsbuxaddict. If someone still wants to enjoy one of our beverages but with less sugar or perhaps no sugar, why should we not give them an option? Everyone should be able to experience our beverages, and now even people who maybe couldn't due to health reasons can do just that. This company is not run by idiots. I agree, I sometimes wonder about the marketing of some things as well,(Chantico anyone?) but to make such a negative statement is a bit much just because you may disagree with a promotion they roll out. Just my opinion.

As always, 76 just rolls right with it. Gotta tell ya, I am way impressed with your ability to handle change, and even embrace it. You are what will make the transition easy for your customers. Oh yeah, and you get an online "BE KNOWLEDEABLE" card for the white mocha thing LOL

[Darleen]

If I walk in my store and order a nonfat, no-whip mocha, one the baristas thinks I mean sugar-free, and I take a sip of my drink, I can tell you what's going to happen-- everything that's in my stomach will end up on the floor.

Stacy, I don't think the baristas are that inept that they will assume you want SF if you do not order SF. If someone wants a NF VL would you assume they want SFV? I think some of you are blowing this a bit out of proportion. It ain't rocket science we'll all adapt, just another new day.

[Darleen]

A zero-sum gain, and a severe lack of creativity from those in R&D and marketing. If this is the best they can do this company is in serious trouble.

Time to stop my SIP contribution!

Wow, just wow...

[Stacy]

So you really think that after all the assuming barista's have done already (oh you think I'll like foam on mocha or no water in my chai??), that there isn't going to be a "skinny" mix up? Or that the customers who already use the term skinny to mean nonfat only are going to be pissed when they take a sip of their disgusting sugar-free drink?

Even without this crappy marketing, we've all accidentally heard mocha instead of white mocha or whatever else it might be. It's not a question of ineptitude. It's more or less confusion-- made by corporate because they think they are simplifying things when they're not.

[Darleen]

Or that the customers who already use the term skinny to mean nonfat only are going to be pissed when they take a sip of their disgusting sugar-free drink?

No, I'm sure if they get the wrong drink they will be upset, no doubt. What I'm saying is baristas will have to inform customers what the term SKINNY now means for awhile, there will have to be some communication at first but it will become the norm after awhile.

[Equal Aming Equals]

Although I'm not entirely sold on this, I can see some of the benefit of it. Corporate is trying to build repeat customers (ie: this drink isn't that bad, you can actually have two!) and build new traffic by bringing people who otherwise weren't Starbucks customers for health reasons into (or back into) the store. It's actually a smart way of reaching out to the non-customer or the customer who doesn't pay attention to all the new developments.
Frankly, I think having a consolidated term for SF, N, -W, actually makes sense, and cuts down on the confusion. Realistically we need to be honest about the # of customers that order their drink this way, and if the drink is NOT called as "skinny" it means the drink has at least some exception to the SK recipe. It's not as if we're gonna start making all N -W drinks as SK. Do you do that now? Why would you start?
Also, think of how many customers don't know that their drink is available sugar free, or that it comes with whip. Making these options clear to our customers is what starbucks is totally about.

Sorry for rambling, but one last comment - Don't you think that a better marking of this drink would be SK in the custom box and the syrup in the Syrup box?

[Vicki Verona]

Just want to point out that although many of us who are passionate enough about the company to care to post here know that the company needs to really reinvent itself in the wake of the shaky macro economic climate, the company knows it needs to as well.

The company theme for this year is "Changing the Game." It started with Cash Handling Simplification (which I absolutely love) and Customer Voice (which I think has a lot of potential but will undergo some tweaking as they evaluate it more)

Due to confidentiality, I can't get into the system wide initiatives the company is implementing in the next 2 years, but I know the field leadership team going all the way across to ASM are going to love it.

Fear not fellow partners, the company has a plan for change. In the mean time, we must remember not to stray away from the plan that has been set from day 1....our guiding principles, mission statement, and core purpose. Let us reach into the depths of our hearts and really connect with every customer. Let us show everyone that all of the marketing and product innovation money in the world couldn't duplicate the Starbucks Legendary Experience.....

[Darleen]

Fear not fellow partners, the company has a plan for change. In the mean time, we must remember not to stray away from the plan that has been set from day 1....our guiding principles, mission statement, and core purpose.

Oh my! I think the clouds just parted and trumpets were blaring!! Woo-Hoo

[jabanga]

"Great to see that SBUX stock is down 2.5% today on the news"

no, that wasn't the news. it was just the passage of another day.

[chitown's best/angriest barista]

dumbest f-ing idea ever!!! really! what idiot got paid to think this up? pretty sure that money would have been better spent upgrading my store, or upgrading our paychecks.
i have not spent all of my time at the bux trying to get people to correctly order their drinks (not "skim" but "non-fat" "yes, you do need to tell me you want whip on a caramel macchiato, because they normally do not come with it." etc.) to now have them introduce this crackpot idea and throw everything off! i also think "k" is one of the crassest ugly-looking letters ever and i don't like seeing it scribbled all over my nicely marked cups. not to mention i'm still trying to get my customers to look at the cups and read the markings themselves, so throw some foreign looking crap in there and i'm gonna be getting even more dumbfounded gawkers.
anyone else thinks that the influx of "s" will also cause some confusion with soy or not? this is why we don't say skim, because skim and soy both begin with "s" and when you're in a rush you want everything as clear and spelled out as possible to reduce the chances for mistakes. (hence the ALWAYS asking if there's whip on non-fat or soy drinks.)
and as others have already said, using the word "skinny" has some pretty deep connotations, and i don't think that's an area we should be getting ourselves entangled in.
even my previous SM thinks the idea is stupid, and it says something if management isn't joyfully jumping on the bandwagon.
and sugar-free mocha tastes like crap anyway. i finally tried it today and i could only finish about a third of my tall before i gave up any hope of getting my caffeine intake from that drink.
and that was a rather long rant. sorry.

[Javaccino]

I can see the appeal: If a new customer wants his/her flavored latte as low-cal as possible, just having them say "skinny" seems like a good idea. We'll know how to make it.

on the downside: I was under the impression that we were to call and mark the same way we always had. I'm disappointed to learn that this is not the case. As a customer, having a long line of modifiers etched down the side of the cup has it's snob appeal. As a parter, I have just gotten to the point where I thought that I was fluent in Starbucks Cuneiform.

I'm waiting for the first time I have to say to a baffled customer "Sorry, you can't your drink 'skinny' because there is no sugar-free toffee nut".

[Javaccino]

Off topic:
I had a customer today who wanted a a solo long-shot espresso macchiato, which apparently she regularly orders in Canada. I was disappointed to have to tell her that we couldn't figure out how to make mister Verismo pull a lungo. I guess I could have made it a 1 1/2 shot, but it just wouldn't be the same, would it?

[BURRISTA]

Re: Solo Long Espresso

For those, I usually pull a Doppio Long shot and only put the cup underneath one of the spouts, letting the other half of the shot drain.

[Javaccino]

Re: Solo Long Espresso

For those, I usually pull a Doppio Long shot and only put the cup underneath one of the spouts, letting the other half of the shot drain.

OK. How do you do a doppio long-shot. Specifically can you trick a Verismo into putting more than 1 oz of H2O into a shot?

Thats so wierd!
We have long buttons on all the machines. All of the tea buttons have been reprogrammed to make long shots. Still nothing like the LaMarzocco days tho.

[Stacy]

"What I'm saying is baristas will have to inform customers what the term SKINNY now means for awhile, there will have to be some communication at first but it will become the norm after awhile."

I get what you're saying Darleen. I do. But it's already been proven, just by the small sample on this board, that not all baristas care enough to educate our customers. This is where the problem really en lies. Corporate seems to be naive enough to believe that all their employees actually care about the mission statement and guiding principles. So instead of focusing on things they really need to focus on, they are spending their time coming up with nasty so-called healthier options and trying to change the lingo that customers already spent enough time learning.

[Pat Nerr]

Darleen... I gotta wonder why folks are calling it "new". It's not... I liken this to Zune. Starbucks is trying to create something that no one has asked for. Chalk it up as another Chantico/Mazagran/JOE mag in the making

[chitown's best/angriest barista]

communicating this for a while? really?!
i'm STILL communicating that: no, we no longer carry valencia or regular cinnamon, dulce de leche was only a promotional offering and i swear we are not hiding any in the back, we do not have non-fat soy milk or non-fat organic and no, we never have nor ever will, yes a cappoccuino really is supposed to be light and foamy and i am not trying to cheat you out of milk, non-fat mochas and such do come with whipped cream unless you tell me otherwise, iced tea/coffee comes sweetened unless you tell me otherwise, etc. i do this 600 times a day, it gets old after a (little) while.
please, corporate monekys, if you're paying attention, please don't make me communicate any more things to the customers who doubt i have any communication skills at all. it just makes my allready frustrating job even more difficult.