Thursday, January 26, 2012

You Do What Wal-Mart Wants


NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT -News) plans to start selling a new single-serve beverage maker, according to an analyst report on Thursday, sending shares of rival coffee system maker Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc(NasdaqGS:GMCR - News) down more than 4 percent.

The introduction of the Esio Beverage System, with its relatively inexpensive drinks, could pressure the price that Green Mountain, the dominant player in the U.S. single-serve coffee market, can charge for its K-Cups, which are the portions of coffee used in its brewers, the report said.
Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, has plans to begin selling the Esio System, which can make single servings of hot and cold drinks including coffee, tea, energy drinks and vitamin waters, according to a report by research firm Detwiler Fenton.

"We believe that this introduction will likely be a game changer in the single-serve category," Detwiler said in the report, adding that Walmart had been frustrated with Green Mountain's pricing, which was considered too high for the Walmart consumer.
More at Yahoo Finance.