Patrick Scullin of Norcross has his weekend routine down pat: A self-described coffee snob, he makes lattes from Starbucks espresso beans.
Even though the price of Starbucks beans at grocery stores is more expensive than it was a few months ago, Scullin is undeterred.
“Heavy coffee drinkers will pay the price, and maybe complain about it,” he said. “Over a cup of coffee.”
In the past year, coffee prices have skyrocketed: In April, a pound of coffee was 40 percent more expensive than a year before. That outpaced even gasoline, the liquid fuel about which we gnash our teeth the most.
The price increases are testing our allegiance to the brew; so far, it seems unshaken.
Take Ernie Bower of Lilburn. He buys dry coffee in bulk at Dunkin’ Donuts, where he pays $25 for 4 pounds — that’s $3 more than he paid last year.
“They’ll pry my coffee cup from my cold fingers before I give that up,” said Bower, 69.
Coffee is not the only indulgence we don’t easily surrender when money is tight or prices jump. Internet service, hair coloring, smartphones, even three-ply toilet paper are in many folks’ “don’t touch” category — even if it means sacrificing elsewhere.
“You’ve got these little luxuries that people find it difficult to find acceptable substitutes for,” said Ian Schmutte, assistant professor of economics at the University of Georgia. “And even if they did, it wouldn’t make that big of a difference in their budget.”
The recession forced many consumers to put all their purchases under the microscope, from new jeans to high-end cosmetics.
But last year Americans put a number of purchases back on the “untouchable” list, according to a National Retail Federation survey. Among them was a daily cup of gourmet coffee, with one in six respondents saying they had to have it, up from one in seven before.
A number of metro Atlantans are either shrugging off the higher prices or adjusting other habits to clear space for coffee.
Jamie Turner of Buckhead changed car insurance companies rather than eliminating trips to coffee shops, ice cream stores or book sellers. Changing car insurance more than paid for a year’s worth of coffee, he said.
Chad David Shearer, creative director at an Atlanta public relations agency, buys Seattle’s Best (for home brewing) or stops by Condesa Coffee in the Old Fourth Ward (for a dark roast).
“It’s a luxury that I would always afford — not that much of a big deal,” he said. “My biggest concern is gas prices.”
So why are coffee prices so high, anyway?
You can blame it on higher demand from Brazil and China, smaller harvests in Indonesia, higher fuel prices, bad weather in Colombia or speculation among investors.
Whatever the reason, prices keep rising.
Last month, Starbucks said it would raise the cost of its packaged coffee sold in its own stores by 17 percent. That followed a 12 percent increase in the price of Starbucks packaged coffee sold at grocery stores.
As local coffee entrepreneurs contemplate higher costs, they hope customers will absorb higher prices.
Tony Riffel, owner of Octane Coffee west of Georgia Tech, said coffee that used to be $8 or $9 a pound wholesale is now $11 or $12. Octane hasn’t raised prices yet, but Riffel said it will eventually have to.
“I predict that we will see some fallout,” he said. “But we strive to provide a great experience and I feel that most people who appreciate a great coffee will feel that it is worth the extra few cents.”
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SURVEY FINDS ITEMS THAT WE WON'T GIVE UP
We love our coffee. What else won’t we part with when money gets tight?
A 2010 survey for the National Retail Federation polled 5,015 Americans on what products they would consider essential.
Some findings:
-- More than 42 percent of respondents said haircuts or coloring are “untouchable.”
-- Almost one-third said dining at a casual sit-down restaurant was essential, up from 28.7 percent a year before.
-- Some larger expenses, like phone plans costing $60 to $70 a month, have become more untouchable in the past two years. Kathy Grannis, a spokeswoman for the National Retail Federation, said the attitude among many consumers is, “hands off the electronics.”
-- Pedicures are protected among 11.6 percent of the respondents. Ann Yauger of Brookhaven agrees: “I consider them hot-weather necessities.”
Even high-end toilet paper is doing well.
Atlanta-based Georgia-Pacific sells 1.4 billion regular rolls of its three-ply Quilted Northern Ultra Plush toilet paper every year — and it’s grabbing market share from cheaper varieties.
“Consumers did not want to scrimp on toilet paper,” said Andrew Towle, a vice president at Georgia-Pacific.
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