30th May 2023 – (Hong Kong) Laxman Narasimhan, the new global CEO of Starbucks, has reaffirmed the coffee giant‘s commitment to expanding its presence in China. Speaking during a visit to Shanghai, where Starbucks operates more than 1,000 stores, Narasimhan highlighted the huge market potential in China and stated that the company’s goal of opening 9,000 stores on the Chinese mainland by 2025 remained unchanged.
While China’s per capita coffee consumption is rising, it still lags far behind that of Japan and the United States, leaving significant room for business growth, Narasimhan noted. Starbucks opened its first store on the Chinese mainland in 1999 and has since expanded to over 6,200 stores across 244 cities as of 2nd April, 2021.
Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Starbucks has remained optimistic about the Chinese market and announced plans last year to increase its store count to 9,000 by 2025. With China’s growing middle class and increasing demand for premium coffee, Starbucks is well-positioned to continue its expansion in the country.