Starbucks Celebrates Five Years in France with the Debut of a Reinvented Store Experience
Disneyland Paris store is the company’s first in Europe to be built under a new global design strategy that elevates coffee heritage, reflects local character and reduces environmental impacts.
PARIS – July 1, 2009 – Starbucks Coffee France SAS today announced the grand opening of its 50th store in France, which coincides with the company’s five year anniversary in the country. Starbucks opened its first store in France at Paris Opera in January 2004, and now operates stores in and around Paris and Lyon.
“We are extremely pleased that our French customers, who are passionate coffee lovers, have embraced the Starbucks Experience,” said Philippe Sanchez, managing director of Starbucks Coffee France. “We look forward to welcoming customers into our new Disneyland Paris store, which reflects our connection to the local community and our environmental efforts.” Sanchez will be joined at the anniversary celebration by Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairman, president and ceo, and Philippe Gas, president of Euro Disney.
The Disneyland Paris store reflects the rich local culture and takes a playful, storybook approach with educational and large-scale items that encourage parent-child interaction. Built using reused and recycled materials, the store is the company’s first in Europe to be registered for LEED® certification*. Some of its unique features include:
- The wooden cladding on the bulkhead is made from reclaimed Champagne racks;
- The countertop is made from a material containing recycled mobile phone parts;
- The walk-off entrance mats were made with recycled rubber from French aircraft tires; and
- The unique ventilation system utilizes natural convection-exhausting heat that rises through a titanium-paneled tower, significantly reducing energy use.
Last week, Starbucks announced its new global store design strategy, setting the stage for a reinvigorated customer experience. The new Disneyland Paris store is an extension of this approach, which highlights Starbucks™ Shared Planet™ commitment to ethical sourcing, environmental stewardship and community involvement.
“We are delighted to welcome the 50th Starbucks store in France to Disney Village,” said Gas. “This world-famous brand will enrich the experience of our visitors and it perfectly complements our environmental efforts to maintain air, land and water quality.”
Starbucks new store design strategy aligns with the company’s specific long-term goals related to energy and water conservation, recycling and green construction:
- Derive 50 percent of the energy used in company-operated stores from renewable sources by 2010;
- Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by making company-operated stores 25 percent more energy efficient by 2010;
- Achieve LEED certification for all new company-operated stores worldwide by late 2010;
- Ensure 100 percent of cup supply will be reusable or recyclable by 2015; and
- Make recycling available in company-operated stores where Starbucks controls waste collection by 2015.
“We recognize the importance of continuously evolving with our customers’ interests, lifestyles and values in order to stay relevant over the long term. We hope our French customers will feel an enhanced sense of community, a deeper connection to our coffee heritage and a greater level of commitment to environmental consciousness,” said Arthur Rubinfeld, president, Starbucks Coffee Global Development. In addition to implementing the new strategy in company-operated stores, Starbucks will provide licensees and other business partners with design plans and guidance on construction.
To learn more about Starbucks™ Shared Planet™ goals, visit www.starbucks.com/sharedplanet.
*The U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED green building certification system is the foremost program for the design, construction and operation of high performance green building. For further details, please visit www.usgbc.org.
