Canadian Starbucks customers will soon be able to enjoy a French pastry, as well as beer, wine and tapas-style finger foods, as part of a sweeping series of changes the company is making to boost sales.
The first new offering begins rolling out next month, when a range of French pastries from San Francisco-based La Boulange will begin appearing in select Canadian locations.
Starbucks purchased La Boulange in 2012 and its products are already in all of Starbucks’ U.S. stores.
The pastries will start arriving in Ontario and British Columbia locations on March 3, and the roll-out will continue across Canada through June, Starbucks Canada senior communications manager Carly Suppa told CTV News in an email statement.
Suppa called the changes “the biggest transformation of food at Starbucks.”
Starbucks is also considering offering beer, wine and “small plate” foods to appeal to customers who may want to enjoy an evening drink with friends but want to stay out of the bar scene.
The company announced last year that it will expand its Starbucks Evenings program to thousands of U.S. locations over the next several years. At the time, however, the company said it had no plans to offer it in Canada.
That plan appears to have changed. While Suppa could not provide detailed information about when Starbucks Evenings will come to Canada, it appears Canadian customers will soon be able to enjoy delicacies such as bacon-wrapped dates, goat-cheese flatbread and parmesan-crusted chicken skewers.
The company is also looking to bring its Mobile Order and Pay service to Canada, following its successful launch in the U.S.
Customers can order and pay via their Starbucks app and then pick up their goodies from a location of their choosing, Suppa said in her statement.
“We are looking at bringing these options to Canada this year but are not yet able to share the detailed timeline,” Suppa said.
