Starbucks makes a concoction of espresso, steamed non-fat milk and sugar-free cinnamon syrup that it calls a Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte. Typically, Giselle Matsui needs two of them to make it through her waking hours.

Matsui is an audiologist who lives in Chanhassen. She understands the world of pricing. After forking over $3.90 plus tax for a Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte, she figured out a couple of months ago that she could order the same drink off the make-your-own latte list, specifying non-fat milk and a shot of cinnamon syrup. It would save her 40 cents a drink. That’s no small matter when you consider how many times she shows up at Starbucks jonesing for that pungent beverage.

Alas, Starbucks baristas haven’t always cooperated with Matsui’s cost-saving scheme. Despite her protests, they ring the make-your-own latte up as a full-priced specialty drink.

In Matsui’s view, that’s just wrong. She said she had persuaded the baristas at her hometown Starbucks to charge her the make-your-own price. But everywhere else, there’s a fight at the counter.

“They of course get cranky,” Matsui told me. “That isn’t fun. You’re constantly having to explain yourself. I don’t want to pay 40 cents more. I love this drink. I get it every day.”

My investigation into this pricing predicament took much longer than I expected. The folks at the Chanhassen Starbucks referred me to corporate headquarters in Seattle. It took a couple of weeks for a response, and that came from a public relations firm in Atlanta that contracts with Starbucks. I do understand that my inquiry might not have been at the top of Starbucks’ PR concerns. Last month, Starbucks’ quarterly profit dropped 97 percent from the previous year.

As I waited for a response, I did my own undercover buy of the make-your-own cinnamon latte at a Starbucks in downtown Minneapolis. I got the drink at the cheaper price, no questions asked. I actually got it twice. The first one was snatched off the counter by a thief, which is something that happens every so often, the barista told me.

I persisted with the Starbucks public relations people, because retail companies always say they care about their individual customers. After two statements that didn’t address Matsui’s conflict, I got the following statement, attributed to Amy Lemen, Starbucks Local Marketing Manager. An actual interview, I was told, was impossible.

“If the customer is ordering a latte with the addition of Cinnamon Dolce syrup – a premium syrup – then she is essentially ordering a Cinnamon Dolce Latte and should be charged the corresponding premium drink price, as shown on the menuboard.

Starbucks has thousands of drink combinations that allow our customers to truly customize their drinks to fit their personal tastes. As a result, we realize that our menu boards and ordering process can be unclear and sometimes not fit every possible order combination. That is why we are currently working to clarify pricing structures for all of Starbucks many possible drink combinations, with the goal of avoiding similar confusion in the future.”

Matsui estimated she overpaid $180 on the drinks before she figured out the make-your-own scheme. So it looks as if the baristas will be instructed to keep charging her the premium price. Still, the Starbucks corporate people have said they want to talk to Matsui. I hope they don’t try to collect two months of 40-cent undercharges.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008 at 11:51 am and is filed under Buyer beware. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.