Starbucks Coffee International, a wholly owned subsidiary of US coffeehouse giant Starbucks Coffee Company (SCC), and its Spanish partners, Grupo Vips and El Moli Vell, yesterday [Tuesday] opened the first two Starbucks stores in Spain, both situated in Madrid.
The stores are located in the district of Salamanca, on Ortega y Gasset, and in the city center, on Plaza de Canovas del Castillo (Plaza Neptuno) in Madrid.
Last October, Starbucks signed a joint venture agreement with Grupo Vips, Spain’s Madrid-based market leader in full service dining, and Moli Vell, a top retail operator of cafes and pastry shops in the Barcelona area. Tres Estrellas Unidas SL, the joint venture between Starbucks and its Spanish partners, will be managing the day-to-day Starbucks operations in Spain.
Howard Schultz, chairman and chief global strategist of SCC, said: “Our entry into Spain comes at a very exciting time for Starbucks when all aspects of our business are building momentum and delivering solid results.
“In Europe, we have been impressed by the tremendous reception of the Starbucks brand following our successful store openings in Switzerland and Austria. While these are still early days in our growth, our success worldwide firmly validates our ongoing belief of the enormous potential for expansion in Europe.”
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By GlobalDataIn addition to Spain, the first Starbucks store in Germany is scheduled to open in May, followed by Greece at the end of this year. Starbucks is also rapidly proceeding with its strategic plans for the Latin American market, having announced its plans for Mexico and Puerto Rico recently. In Asia, Starbucks is expanding into Indonesia with its local partner, PT Mitra Adiperkasa.
Alvaro Canete, MD of Tres Estrellas Unidas, commented: “We take great pride in launching the Starbucks Experience in Spain. Following the first two stores in Madrid, we plan to open another 10 to 15 stores over the next 18 to 24 months and open in Barcelona by summer,”
Starbucks achieved a major milestone with its successful entry into Austria, the birthplace of the European coffee house culture, with the opening of its first store in Vienna last December. Prior to Austria, Starbucks opened its first store in continental Europe in Zurich, Switzerland, in March last year, and currently has stores in Zurich, Basel and Bern.
Peter Maslen, president, Starbucks Coffee International, said: “We believe that the Starbucks Experience will be as relevant in Spain as it is in the rest of our international markets in Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East.”