Starbucks Korea has raised the prices of its larger cup sizes in response to increasing global coffee costs. Starting from August 2, 2024, the price of a grande (16oz) coffee has gone up by ₩300 ($0.22), while the venti (20oz) size now costs ₩600 ($0.44) more.
In a statement, Starbucks Korea explained that the price hike was necessary due to the continuous rise in costs. The company had been absorbing these costs internally, both domestically and internationally, but found it necessary to adjust prices as the financial pressures became too great.
In addition to the price increase for its grande and venti sizes, Starbucks Korea has also raised prices for beverage customizations and its packaged wholebean and instant coffee products.
This isn’t the first time Starbucks Korea has increased its prices. In January 2022, the company raised the cost of all in-store beverages by up to ₩300 ($0.22).
The price of coffee, particularly arabica and robusta beans, has been rising globally. In April 2024, robusta coffee prices hit a 45-year high due to unusually dry weather conditions in Vietnam, the world’s largest producer of robusta.
Starbucks has been a major presence in South Korea since opening its first store at Ewha Womans University in 1999. The company now operates over 1,900 stores across 82 cities in the country, making South Korea its fourth-largest market after the US, China, and Japan.
Starbucks Korea is primarily owned by the retail giant E-mart, which increased its stake to 67.5% in January 2022, purchasing an additional 17.5% share for $411 million. The remaining 32.5% of the company is owned by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC.
In 2023, Starbucks Korea reported revenues of ₩2.9 trillion ($2.1 billion).