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Starbucks adds Barnie's to cup

The coffee giant is taking over half the Barnie's in Florida, six of which are in the Tampa Bay area.

By MARK ALBRIGHT
Published May 4, 2006

The deal, which has yet to close, is part of a withdrawal from company-owned retail outlets by Winter Park-based Barnie's.

The company's founder a decade ago bemoaned the impending invasion of a fast-growing rival from Seattle that he berated as ''Charbucks'' because he said Starbucks scorched the natural flavor out of their dark roasted beans.

Neither Barnie's, which will have 54 franchised and company-owned stores left after the sale, nor Starbucks' officials would identify which of the 39 stores in Florida regional malls are being sold. Most of the six Barnie's in Tampa Bay area malls are company owned.

It's also unclear if the Barnie's in Westfield Citrus Park and Countryside will be closed because Starbucks already operates inside those malls. Barnie's pulled out of WestShore Plaza in Tampa last year after a Starbucks opened

Just because there's a Starbucks close by does not mean an existing store would be closed.

''We try to have stores wherever our customers go,'' said Starbucks spokesman Alan Hilowitz. "For instance, we have as many as three Starbucks in a single office building in some cities.''

Barnie's workers will be offered a chance to be trained as Starbucks baristas.

Starbucks, which has become almost as ubiquitous as McDonald's with 11,000 stores worldwide, will be adding to its 270 locations in Florida

The move is part of a strategic decision by Barnie's owners to concentrate on building its franchised store network, institutional sales to restaurants and sales of beans and ground coffee in grocery stores such as Publix and Sweetbay Supermarket locally.

"We also are focusing on our mail-order business and online site,'' said Sonya Wahl, vice president of merchandising for Barnie's.

Barnie's was founded 26 years ago by Phil "Barnie'' Jones, a onetime Presbyterian minister who learned the roasting business in the San Francisco coffee house scene of the 1960s. He built the company into one of the largest chains of mall gourmet coffee stores.

The chain ended up in the hands of Sara Lee Corp., which broadened its distribution channels, then sold the company in 2001 to Neil Leach, a former Blockbuster franchisee. Barnie's revenues were $67.3-million in 2005, while Starbucks was 100 times larger at $6.7-billion.

Mark Albright can be reached at albright@sptimes.com or 727 893-8252.

STARBUCKS CORP.

The world's largest chain of coffee shops said second-quarter profit rose 27 percent after it added a line of green tea drinks and opened more than 400 stores. The company raised its profit forecast for the year.

2nd Qtr Year Ago

Revenue $1.89-bil $1.52-bil

Net Income $127.3-mil $100.5-mil

Per Share 16 cents 12 cents

[Last modified May 4, 2006, 07:12:05]