As Starbucks prepares to open its first South African outlet, the question on every coffee addict’s mind is how much it’s going to cost. Starbucks haven’t announced their pricing yet, but a lady with a lot of time on her hands did some research on their pricing structure a couple of years back, and her findings are pretty interesting.

It’s no shock to anyone that the price of a latte varies across the globe, but quite how much is a bit alarming, as this chart from the Wall Street Journal shows:

I’m no mathematician but the wiggly line next to the Rand doesn’t look so lekker either.

Why is there a $7.03 difference between a latte bought in New Delhi and a latte bought in Oslo? Three reasons – occupancy, store operating expenses and cost of goods, factors which are calculated against the geography and economy the Starbucks outlet is operating in.

Competitive pricing isn’t mentioned, but perhaps when you’re Starbucks it doesn’t really matter – it will be interesting to see where SA slots in on the list of ‘who has to pay through the nose for their coffee’, particularly as the only other African locations, Egypt and Morocco, don’t feature.

Considering a coffee in Oslo will cost you R122 by today’s conversion rate, I hope to hell it’s on the bottom end of the scale.

For more details and an Excel spreadsheet, click HERE.

[sources: Consumeronomics and WSJ]