Starbucks strikes partnership with Alibaba to deliver coffee in 30 minutes

STARBUCKS sees an opportunity in China where customers love shopping online and enjoy a good cup of coffee at almost any time of the day.

As a result, the US-based chain of coffee shops, with an ever-growing presence in China, has decided to partner with Alibaba to build an interesting new offering using the latter’s smart speaker Tmall Genie and food delivery platform Ele.me.

The company has previously worked with Alibaba and believes that the new collaboration will enable it to delight customers by delivering coffee in 30 minutes or less.

“Earlier this year, we launched food order and delivery service through Ele.me in response to our users’ needs for on-demand local services,” said Alibaba AI Labs General Manager Miffy Chen.

“We’re excited to introduce an even more diverse and enriched experience on our platform through Starbucks voice ordering and provide a direct benefit to Chinese consumers within their daily routine

Currently, Alibaba’s online retailer Taobao carries a special Starbucks edition smart speaker — Tmall Genie — which has sold over 10,000 pieces at CNY199 (US$29).

Customers wanting delivery can place their order using their voices on Tmall Genie, and track their order online over the 30-minutes they wait for delivery.

“We’re excited to introduce an even more diverse and enriched experience on our platform through Starbucks voice ordering and provide a direct benefit to Chinese consumers within their daily routine.”

Starbucks is planning to make the voice-ordering a personal experience by adding a customized recommendation — using previous order history and popular items from the current seasonal menu for members when they order using voice-commands.

“The Starbucks feature through Alibaba’s Tmall Genie ushers in a new era of digital customer engagement for Starbucks,” said Starbucks China Digital Ventures VP and GM Molly Liu.

“We are focused on ensuring that Starbucks voice ordering is truly personal, and we look forward to offering our customers more convenient moments and new opportunities to engage with Starbucks on a single integrated platform as they move throughout the day.”

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