Coffee delivery prompted a brief, off-agenda discussion at Starbucks’ annual meeting in Seattle last week. Already costly, brand experts nevertheless believe that the even greater expense of coffee beverage delivery is irrelevant. Consumers already know Starbucks products to be expensive, they say, and would expect delivered costs to be even higher.

But the open question, says brand consultant Jonathan Salem Baskin (no relation to this reporter) is “What exactly is Starbucks selling to customers?” He says that what has been the central product for Starbucks over the years has not been the coffee but “the place that has coffee in it.”

Later this year, Starbucks will experiment with two new delivery systems in two different cities.

In Starbucks’ hometown of Seattle, a delivery application will pair the company with Postmates, which advertises itself as the largest, on-demand delivery service in the United States. The slick app will display for the buyer a photo of the person scheduled to make the delivery as well as tracking progress toward delivery.

New York City’s Empire State Building will see its own internal delivery system as green-apron wearing baristas will deliver food and drink to workers in the building. Ordering will be through standard web browsers although an app is planned.

Bryant Simon, the author of Everything But the Coffee: Learning About America from Starbucks, says that the company is transitioning to “a convenience, everyday brand,” thus making their product even easier to obtain. Reportedly, rather than raising the cost of individual coffee and food items, Starbucks will tack on a one-time delivery fee. Postmates, which currently operates in 22 U.S. cities, says its rates begin at $5 if delivery is within a radius of one mile. The company works with approximately 10,000 independent contractors, who deliver variously via cars, scooters or bicycles.

Postmates says Starbucks drinks are easier to deliver than most because the little, green stoppers Starbucks uses keep them relatively spill-free.A co-founder of Postmates, Bastian Lehmann characterizes whoever invented the tiny plugs as “a genius.”