Starbucks is partnering with Ariana Grande on its latest coffee offering. The coffee chain and singer both posted twin cloud emoji tweets on Monday. Grande tagged @Starbucks, leading fans online to piece together that she was teasing the new "Cloud Macchiato," which Starbucks ($SBUX) officially launched this week. She followed those up with a pair of new tweets Tuesday morning showing the singer decked out in a Starbucks apron sipping on one of the new bevvies.
Internal documents showed that Grande was helping the company launch the new beverage, according to Business Insider.
Grande might already be considered an unofficial brand ambassador given how many times she's been snapped holding a Starbucks drink. Starbucks has not confirmed that it has a partnership with the "Thank U, Next" singer, though BI reported that as part of the promotion some stores will also feature Grande-approved playlists and songs.
The Cloud Macchiato is a twist on an Italian coffee staple. The "macchiato," literally translated to "stained" is a shot of espresso with a bit (stain) of frothed milk. Starbucks gained success bastardizing that and other Italian cafe classics with iced versions, caramel drizzles, and mocha. The Cloud version will come in cinnamon or caramel versions with a dollop of whipped cold milk foam, according to the press release.
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The Fed is gearing up to take more action to curb inflation. According to minutes from the central bank's March meeting, officials "generally agreed" the Fed should shrink its balance sheet by $95 billion per month and is considering larger rate hikes than its usual 25-basis point increase. Nela Richardson, ADP's Chief Economist, joined Cheddar to break down the potential impacts of these moves on the economy.
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