Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) Joins Forces With Beer Company To Make Bottled Tea

The country’s biggest coffee maker Starbucks is teaming up with Anheuser-Busch to produce a bottled version of Starbuck’s Teavana tea.
Don’t get too excited though, because the tea will be non-alcoholic.

This is a huge move for Starbucks none the less as it helps position the company as more than just a coffee store and expands its presence in grocery stores. This will be Starbucks’s very first ready to drink tea product.

The definitive agreement is expected to be finalized by the second half of calendar year 2016 and plans to sell the Teavana bottled tea in the U.S. will begin in the first half of 2017.

Starbucks acquired specialty tea retailer Teavana back in Dec 2012 and has since opened Teavana tea bars in existing Starbucks stores. Products and beverages include an assortment of handcrafted tea beverages, premium loose leaf teas, tea-inspired food offerings and tea merchandise.

As part of the agreement, Anheuser-Busch will bottle, distribute and market the drinks.
The company’s management is focused on growing the Teavana brand to $2 billion over the next five years.

Disclaimer: We have no position in Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) and have not been compensated for this article.