- Starbucks' wait times have increased with higher demand for complicated cold drinks.
- The company is rolling out its new "Siren System" to overhaul and streamline drink-making.
- But the system is still in testing, and it'll likely take years for most locations to get the update.
Starbucks is spending billions to shorten customer wait times. Last year the company announced its new "Siren System," a set of procedures and equipment to overhaul and streamline the drink-making process. Unfortunately for Starbucks regulars fed up with delays getting their pumpkin cream cold brews, most customers will have to wait to experience the chain's new system.
Long Starbucks wait times have become increasingly common over the last few years, especially considering the high demand for cold drinks, which now make up a whopping 70% of all Starbucks' sales. But the cold drinks on the menu also tend to be more complicated and take longer to make.
"Cold beverage builds are increasingly complex and time-consuming, and the surge in volume has caused bottlenecks in Starbucks stores," said John Culver, Starbucks COO, in a release on the company's website.
Starbucks did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
The new Siren System targets this problem by introducing faster and easier methods of making cold brews, frappuccinos, and other iced drinks on the menu. It includes a custom ice dispenser, milk dispenser, and faster blenders, speeding things up and also cutting down on the manual labor that baristas often have to do, like carrying ice buckets and jugs back and forth across the workspace.
With the new system, a Grande Mocha Frappucino could take a barista 36 seconds and 13 steps to make instead of the typical 87 seconds and 16 steps, Starbucks says. And a new process for making cold brew will allow baristas to make the drink in just a few seconds, instead of the 20 hours it takes now.
The system is still in testing, though, and only so many stores can be closed at once to undergo the major remodeling. Only 40% of stores are expected to have the Siren System in three years time, Bloomberg recently reported. And Starbucks employees have mixed feelings about the change to begin with — while it might make aspects of the job easier, some are worried that trainings will get more tedious, quality might slip, or that the new system will take away the things they actually enjoy about their jobs.
One Washington barista previously told Insider they were disappointed that "a lot of the traditional cafe skills just won't be relevant anymore." Another from California said their favorite part of being a barista is the hands-on aspect of the job, and being able to add their own flair to it.
"If what you want is a giant frappuccino vending machine, then you'll be happy with the direction Starbucks has been taking," said another barista in Boston.
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