Starbucks Opens its Doors in Brazil
Starbucks Coffee Company (Nasdaq: SBUX) and Starbucks Brasil today announced that its first two stores in Brazil will open this week in Sao Paolo at Shopping Morumbi. The first store is located in the new wing of the mall and the second at the opposite next to the Saraiva Bookstore.
“São Paulo will serve as a springboard for Starbucks strategic expansion into Brazil ? a country with a very rich coffee heritage and tradition that we greatly cherish and respect,” said Martin Coles, president of Starbucks Coffee International. “The opening of our first two stores in São Paulo represents another significant milestone for Starbucks in our goal toward building a global brand.”
Customers in São Paulo and throughout Brazil will now have an opportunity to enjoy Starbucks high quality coffee, legendary customer service, and comfortable Third Place environment, which serves our customers more than 40 million times per week worldwide. Starbucks looks forward to complementing the established coffee culture in the world’s largest coffee producing country with its version of the coffeehouse experience.
“We are thrilled about opening our first Starbucks stores in Brazil,” said Maria Luisa Rodenbeck, general manager for Starbucks Brasil. “I believe our partnership with Starbucks will greatly benefit the coffee industry in Brazil. Brazilians will have career opportunities with one of the most recognized brands in coffee, new premium-quality coffees to choose from, and a sophisticated, welcoming environment where they can connect with friends and family while discovering new handcrafted beverages and food offerings.”
“We are delighted to open our first stores in Brazil in São Paolo,” added Buck Hendrix, president, Starbucks Latin America. “I am particularly excited to bring the Starbucks Experience to a region that is the source of many of our extraordinary coffees and home to some of the best coffee producers in the world. We are looking forward to contributing to São Paolo’s vibrant café culture and to building a great relationship with the people of Brazil.”
Among the many unique and inviting elements that make Starbucks special are its welcoming baristas, each donning a green apron and ready to prepare a customer’s favorite coffee beverage.
“The customization of drinks to each customer’s specifications is one of the things that makes Starbucks special and a lot of fun for our customers,” said Flavio Guimarães and Bruno Pappa, the first two store managers for Starbucks Brazil. “Our store partners look forward to helping customers find their favorite beverage and sharing with them their coffee knowledge. We’ll take customers on regular coffee journeys where they will enjoy different varieties of coffee from Brazil and around the world.”
In addition to opening its first stores in the country, Starbucks is looking forward to supporting community social projects in Brazil. Prior to opening its operations in Brazil, Starbucks partnered with Todos pela Educacao (Everybody for Education), a non-governmental organization committed to supporting educational initiatives. On November 30, the evening before the grand opening, Starbucks will host a charity event to benefit Sao Paulo’s Oswaldo Aranha High School. Funds raised at the event will be matched by Starbucks and used to help rebuild the school’s library.
“Contributing positively to the communities in which Starbucks does business is a fundamental part of Starbucks culture,” said Hendrix.
“Besides helping to build a new, larger and more modern library, we will provide all the books needed to create a better studying environment for the students,” said Rodenbeck.
Oswaldo Aranha High School, which has more than 1,600 students, was selected by Starbucks because of its excellent standards and its commitment to providing the best education possible to its students.
“Starbucks Brasil is pleased to have formed such a mutually beneficial and rewarding partnership,” added Rodenbeck. “We are looking forward to being involved in the local community.”
