News

Starbucks to open first Evolution Fresh retail location

March 19, 2012

In November, Starbucks announced its purchase of Evolution Fresh, a producer of "never heated" juices sold in retail outlets primarily along the West Coast.

Five months later, Starbucks Corp. is getting ready to open Evolution Fresh, its first retail location dedicated to health and wellness. The store features a variety of Evolution Fresh juices and a smattering of menu items.

Interior features for the Bellevue, Wash., location include white walls, light wood and marble countertops. According to a story in USA Today, the juices are customized via eight taps.

From the story:

"Our customers are looking for a healthier lifestyle," says Jeff Hansberry, the former Procter & Gamble executive who is now president of Starbucks Channel Development, which will ultimately oversee a plethora of new brands and products. "Juice and nutrition is no longer a fad. It's a full-blown trend," he says. …

Among the juices: Field of Greens — which blends greens, ginger, apple and cucumber. Or Coconut Zen, made with coconut water, pineapple and cucumber. There are smoothies, too, at $6.99 for a 16-ounce drink. The Smooth Mango is made with apple juice, mangoes, papayas and pineapple. ...

The juice is highly pressurized before it gets to the store in a giant cold press that retains the nutrients of the raw fruit and veggies often lost in heat pasteurization. Since the juice comes pressed, the juice partners don't actually squeeze it. They dole out advice, mix customized juices to order and make smoothies. The company takes this first store so seriously that it's been training the juice partners for months in a specially designed, built-to-scale mock store. ...

Executives declined to detail growth plans for Evolution Fresh. But there will be "several" opening in the Seattle market in the next year and more will open on the East and West coasts, says Rubinfeld. This is not a test. This is the future of Starbucks: growth on supermarket shelves — well beyond caffeine.

Starbucks acquired Evolution Fresh for $30 million in cash. Evolution Fresh is expected to operate at a modest loss in Fiscal 2012, then reach breakeven in FY 2013.

Evolution Fresh was started by the original founder of Naked Juice, Jimmy Rosenberg. Using an innovative technology called High Pressure Pasteurization (HPP), Evolution Fresh is able to deliver a "never heated" juice product to consumers.

Over time, Starbucks plans to expand beyond Evolution Fresh's current distribution into additional channels, as well as begin to make Evolution Fresh products available in Starbucks' company-owned retail stores providing nationwide presence and awareness.

Read more about food and beverage trends.