Starbucks brews new success in mobile transition

Washington

STARBUCKS has been fuelling your caffeine habit for years. Now, the coffee giant is having unusual success brewing a new kind of customer ritual.

The company said last week that, on average, customers pay for a purchase using smartphones seven million times per week, with mobile payments now accounting for roughly 16 per cent of total transactions. With so many payments coming from smartphones, it is clear that Starbucks has managed a feat that perhaps none of its brick-and-mortar counterparts has. They've gotten shoppers accustomed to regularly engaging with them on mobile devices.