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Unless it can also go back in time and fix the economy so that luxury discretionary spending like a $4 cup of coffee is prevalent across America again, I don't see it saving Starbucks. That said, the Clover looks amazing. I want one.

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I admit I can be kinda cheap, and I hate spending $4 for starbucks. But, when I lived in Seattle, I was happy to spend $4 for a cup of Clover coffee. That stuff is fantastic.

Now... after the wedding we just paid for... I would love to have 4 dollars to spend on clover coffee ;)

The fall in luxury spending is not to blame for Starbucks's troubles. In fact, spending on low cost, luxury items goes up in a recession. For example, the revenues of posh cosmetics companies generally increases in a recession. This is because people cannot afford to buy a high-price product like a new car, but they still want the post-spending feel-good factor so they buy a lower-priced luxury-brand lipstick instead.

I'm not convinced that a four-dollar cup of coffee is really a feel-good luxury item though. A luxury item stops feeling like a luxury when you buy it twice a day -- it just feels like an overpriced daily necessity.

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