Starbucks coming to Buenos Aires! (?)

N

Napoleon

2,500+ Posts
Meester Seattle Husker-
About two months ago, you wrote that Starbucks was/is looking at expanding into 5 new countries. Then you listed 4 of them. (~Russia, Brazil, Chile, Japan?...) You didn't mention all 5, but the question was asked-

"Is Starbucks coming to Argentina any time soon?"

Well one of the local expat groups (South American Explorers) reports that Starbucks is coming to a mall in a good part of town.

In reply to:
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For all extranjeros who have ever wanted a 12oz, 16oz, or 20oz coffee TO-GO, it isn't distressing at all. For all of the people who like a Venti Half-Frap Double Mocha Carmel Latte (hold the whip), they'll be doing hand springs.

"Distressing" means "More American chains are invading this city that we've already invaded."

Right now, if you need "Coffee To-Go", you either go to McDonald's or you make it at home. The leading coffee chain in Buenos Aires offers TWO sizes To-Go. 2oz and 4oz (maybe it is 3oz & 6oz) and that's it. Most places don't have "To-Go".

I came back from teaching class the other day with my stainless steel 16oz+ mug with black plastic handle and lid and the ~28 year old guy (out of the couple that I rent my room from) asked if I actually took my mug out on the street. When I said "yes", he was a little shocked.

I love the cafe culture, but with as many extranjeros and people on the move as there are in this city, REAL sized "coffee To-Go" is just waiting to take off. One chain (that usually also sells ice cream) actually has a blended frozen coffee drink.

This country LOVES sweets and energy, I don't know why the Starbucks pseudo-milk shakes aren't here already.
 
Napoleon, what I've seen in countries with a "cafe culture" is that they will go to starbucks just like all of the cafes and get their coffee and sit there. They will still wonder why the rush to get up and take your coffee with you.
 
Starbucks has found that the coffee culture in other countries is darn near a mirror image of the US experience. Where as 60% of coffee in the USA is consumed between 6-9am it's just the opposite in places like China where they consume the same percentage between 6-9pm. In the USA 80% of the coffee is "to go" whereas in China 90+% is consumed at the location.

For retailers like Starbucks this means we have to change our business to conform to the local culture. This means much larger stores with more seating space. It means areas for large groups to gather for meetings. We offer more local cuisine that is geared to evening consumers rather than breakfast pastries.

Though I'm not in the business development area and have limited involvement with our International operations, I have had a chance to hear the stories about our growth in other countries from executives. Things like a "Blueberry muffin" don't always translate well to local bakeries in other countries. In one case in Korea that muffin was blue and lacked any berries because the bakery had purried the berries within the batter. Things we Americans take for granted need to be communicated in painstaking detail to ensure nothing is lost in translation.

As an aside, the 5 major growth markets for the future of Starbucks were Russia, India, China, Brazil and Germany. We currently have stores in ~46 countries.
 
Sorry, I meant "mirror image" as in the exact opposite. I worded it badly.
You are correct. We are growing very rapidly in other countries but we certainly need to tailor our store designs, hours, and operations to the local markets. "To go" is increasing in other countries as they become more "Americanized" but that's a gradual change. We've found that our stores have become meeting places for social events in the evenings. Compare this with 80+% of the traffic in our US stores being "to go". It's the inverse in most other markets with the notable exception of Japan. Japan is like the US on steroids. Our 3 most busy stores in the world are in Tokyo where they have lines for specific drinks. You want a Tall Latte stand in line 1, a Grande Mocha stand in line 2, etc. Traffic there is nearly all "to go".
 
Napoleon- The store opened this past weekend. From what I've been told the first 2 days of sales were the biggest every for any of our stores in Latin America. People lined up for hours before opening. The first drink ordered was a tall Caramel Frappacino even though it was 34 degrees outside.
 
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