This seems to come up over and over again: Is Starbucks really a viable launching pad for a new album? Well, I’m not any closer to figuring it out. With over 7000 company owned locations worldwide (15,000+ overall) as of Q4 2007, you’d think a CD with ubiquitous distribution in the company’s stores would sell like venti mochachinos.

According to the NYT:

Despite adopting a broader musical approach, Starbucks on average sells only two CDs a store each day at company-owned shops, according to people briefed on its business.

Using this math, Starbucks moves 14,000 units a day?

With reported album sales of 4.4 million in 2007, it appears that Starbucks locations are moving an average of over 12,000 cds a day. By anyone’s calculation, that’s alot of product.

An aside:

The chain has gone completely mainstream in order to achieve these numbers. Instead of strengthening their position as global tastemaker and setting themselves up as THE indie launchpad, they’ve taken the easy way out. So much promise, so much potential wasted.

Makes me wonder what other companies have the cred to step in and claim this empty throne….

Seth Godin would totally have this figured out.

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