Each April, Milan becomes the global epicenter of creative expression during Milan Design Week. This year, from April 20-26, Starbucks joined in and showcased coffee culture beyond the cup with:  

• An exhibition at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery Milano offering a behind-the-scenes look at the design process behind the new coffeehouse furniture 

• Iconic Starbucks cups showcased in a creative partnership with a high-end department store and “The Devil Wears Prada 2” 

• An installation centered on sustainability with chairs made from coffee grounds 

Starbucks heritage meets Italian culture at the Milan Roastery 

Starbucks celebrated Italian design and its shared language of craft, design and culture with its new exhibition, “Inspired by Italy,” at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery Milano.  

Two new design elements of the Starbucks coffeehouse experience took center stage in the exhibition: an elegant new lounge chair and stylish ceramic mugs.   

• The soft and generously comfortable Viola lounge chair (“viola” means purple in Italian) was inspired by the iconic purple chair found in Starbucks coffeehouses in the 1990s, offering an invitation to sit, stay and connect. It became a symbol of Starbucks as a welcoming third place. 

• The new Starbucks ceramic for-here mug is designed for moments worth lingering over. Inspired by Italian café culture, its porcelain body features a wider opening to enhance foam and aroma and a naturally balanced handle, finished in white or deep green.  

Both the chair and the mugs are part of Starbucks coffeehouse uplifts, which began rolling out last year in the United States. Over the past 18 months, Starbucks has been reaffirming its role as a community coffeehouse, elevating the in-store experience and restoring the warmth and comfort customers value most.  

Uplifted Starbucks coffeehouses feature softer seating, richer textures, warmer color palettes, thoughtful lighting, improved acoustics, ceramic cups and locally inspired details. Through the experience, guests saw how thoughtful design helps coffeehouses feel welcoming, human and designed for connection 

 Starbucks connects coffee, fashion and film through “The Devil Wears Prada 2” in Milan 

In the center of Milan, Starbucks stepped into the world of fashion through a dynamic partnership with Rinascente, the city’s legendary high-end department store.  

The store featured window displays recreating the fictional Runway magazine offices seen in “The Devil Wears Prada 2.” In the displays, Starbucks cups are on the desks of Runway boss Miranda Priestly and other characters from the movie, a nod to a scene from the first movie where Priestly sends her assistant Andy out to get her Starbucks order each morning.  

Starbucks was also part of the Italian premiere of “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” where fashion leaders, editors and tastemakers gathered on Rinascente’s rooftop, sipping Starbucks coffee while celebrating the intersection of film, fashion and culture. The premiere also featured a recreation of the Runway offices, including Starbucks cups on some of the desks.  

 How Starbucks turned used coffee grounds into sustainable design  

Just steps away from the San Babila theater in Milan, Starbucks commitment to sustainability took center stage through the SLIDE Design Project, an installation that transformed used coffee grounds into something entirely new. 

There, at the Starbucks coffeehouse in the Durini Design District of Milan, visitors could sit in chairs made of a new compound using coffee grounds from Starbucks cafes in Milan and Bergamo. After the coffee grounds were collected, they were transferred to Krill Design, which converted the organic waste into second-life raw material used for the chairs. 

Anchoring the installation was a 10-foot-tall sculpture, made of the same materials, of a barista wearing the Starbucks green apron 

The furniture and sculpture served as a tangible expression of Starbucks broader sustainability ambitions, proving that thoughtful design using materials often considered waste can play a role in building a more resilient future. 

Culture and connection 

Across Milan, Starbucks activations shared a common thread: bringing people together through coffee, creativity and connection. Whether inside the Roastery, above the city skyline or within a design studio setting, Starbucks continues to explore new ways to show up at the intersection of culture and community.