DDi - April/May 2013 - (Page 33)

Photos: Xxxx xxxxx Photos: Aaron Leitz Photography, Seattle | 33 Opposite: Some of Tazo’s custom creations involve dried fruits and other botanicals—reaching beyond the standard store-bought teas. Tea time Above: Custom ﬁxtures, like this “tea tree,” provide a unique opportunity for customers to engage with the product. Starbucks dips into the tea business with its ﬁrst standalone Tazo store in Seattle By Erin M. Loewe F irst setting its sights on augmenting the country’s coffee habits more than 30 years ago, Seattle-based Starbucks Corp. now wants to revolutionize the American tea-drinking experience. In its quest for continued growth and innovation, the coffee powerhouse acquired the Tazo Tea brand in 1999, but just opened its ﬁrst tea-only retail location at Seattle’s University Village in November 2012. Unlike Starbucks, which is focused more on crafting drinks, Tazo Tea specializes in selling loose gourmet tea and helping clients customize unique blends to drink at home. Daniele Monti, creative director for brand expression at Starbucks, says that besides mall tea purveyor Teavana (which, consequently, Starbucks acquired just two days after opening Tazo Tea), there were no other super-premium tea retailers to speak of. “During the research stage, we quickly decided there was strong equity in Tazo as a brand,” he says. “By up-leveling the experience of the world of tea by offering 80-plus brands in a way that’s almost entirely customizable, that exposes ingredients and that involves the customer in touchpoints in the store, we were sure Starbucks was strong enough.” The 1,700-sq.-ft. prototype is a modern mix of grays, greens and whites, with touches of gold. A locally sourced white oak dominates the ﬂoor, www.ddionline.com http://www.ddionline.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of DDi - April/May 2013

DDi - April/May 2013
Table of Contents
From the Editor
From the Show Director
Newsworthy
Shopper Insights
Visual Perspectives
Editor’s Choice
Design Snapshot
Design Snapshot
Markopoulos Award
Tazo Tea
Tiffany & Co.
Experience Makers
Piperlime
Mattel Experience
CookHouse
Aéropostale
Paris Kids Department
Technology & Customer Engagement Section
Technology Trends
Big Data Column
In-Store Technology
Product Spotlight
Design Leaders 2013
Right Light
GlobalShop Coverage
Special Events
Conference Schedule
Chicago Retail
Exhibitor Products
Calendar
Advertisers
Classifieds
Shopping with Paco

DDi - April/May 2013