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Tag: cafe

  • Cafe de Coral warns of declining profit

    Cafe de Coral warns of declining profit

    Cafe de Coral expects to report lower net profit for the six months ended September 30 due to a “severe and expected downturn” amid a weakened economy.

    The restaurant chain forecasts net profit to decline not higher by 30 per cent from HK$200.6 million (US$25.8 million) in the year-ago period, due to the plunge in the restaurant business and a high-base effect following strong sales recovery when the pandemic-related restrictions were lifted.

    In Hong Kong, the company focused on value offers, menu mix, hero product promotions, and membership loyalty strategies to create demand and help offset decline.

    In Mainland China, the company implemented quick menu investments, promotional offers, and brand campaigns to keep a stable performance and profit margins.

    “With the central government’s determined efforts to promote recovery of the economy, as well as our strong underlying business fundamentals and steady focus on constant internal improvement, the group is well positioned to return to growth as the market recovers,” said the company.

  • 7-Eleven unveils 7Cafe concept store at Jewel Changi

    7-Eleven unveils 7Cafe concept store at Jewel Changi

    7-Eleven is usually a place where people pop in and out in a jiffy. However, this isn’t the case at the convenience stores’s first 7Café concept store at Jewel Changi Airport. The 7Café concept store at Jewel Changi Airport is located in Basement 2.

    It has an extended range of 7Café items, including Salted Caramel Coffee, Mocha, and Matcha Frappés priced at $5.50 each. There are also offerings featuring the local flavors of Singapore – Banana Caramel Smoothie inspired by Goreng Pisang and Pandan Lemonade cooler.

    Those who love cheesecakes can try several flavors, including Yuzu, Lychee, or Cookies & Cream all priced at $5.50 each.

    Warm pastries and finger food will be available at the hot food counter. Savoury hot food items include a range of fried chicken favorites including Hot and Spicy Drumlets, Chicken bites with a choice of Red Pepper or Garlic Herb seasoning, Chicken Drumsticks, Nuggets, and Wings.

    Other light options include sandwiches, burgers, and onigiri. There will also be Ready-To-Eat meals too.

    The grand opening of the Jewel 7-Eleven outlet will take place from 25 to 27 November 2022, 11 am to 9 pm daily. Over the weekend, customers can enjoy a sampling of drinks and snacks, free cotton candy floss and 7-Eleven balloons. There will also be chances to walk away with Spin and Win rewards, with a minimum spend of $10, and freebies for completing Jewel Challenge card activities.

    “At 7-Eleven, we always broaden our horizons and create innovative offerings for our customers. The 7-Eleven Jewel Changi store seeks to provide a first-of-its-kind mini café experience with food being served at the counter for the convenience of our customers. We have also expanded our well-loved product range by adding a slew of new options. From items highlighting the iconic local flavors of Singapore to delectable ready-to-eat food options, there’s something for everyone! We hope that everyone will be able to enjoy our new concept store with its unique design and exclusive menu,” said Mr. Steven Lye, Managing Director of 7-Eleven Singapore.

  • Cafe Amazon plans 150 stores in Saudi Arabia

    Cafe Amazon plans 150 stores in Saudi Arabia

    Thailand’s Café Amazon has launched in Saudi Arabia, opening its first store in the region at Riyadh’s InterHealth Hospital.

    PTT Oil and Retail Business (PPTOR), which operates the Café Amazon coffee shop chain, said it is targeting expansion to 150 stores in Saudi Arabia by 2032.

    Marking the opening of the Riyadh store, Jiraphon Kawswat, CEO of PPTOR, highlighted the potential of the retail market in Saudi Arabia, especially the growth of premium coffee outlets which she noted as being driven by increasing consumer demands.

    Project Café Middle East 2019 forecast Saudi Arabia to be the fastest growing market in the Middle East (9.6%), exceeding 2,600 outlets by 2023.

    In October 2021, PPTOR said it plans grow its Café Amazon coffee chain to 1,000 international stores by 2025, a downgraded target from an earlier goal to reach 5,800 stores globally by 2025.

    Founded in 2002, Café Amazon is Thailand’s largest branded coffee chain. The company currently operates more than 4,000 stores across Thailand, Cambodia, China, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Oman, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam.

    PTTOR said that the Café Amazon launch in Saudi Arabia represented the ‘first step to concretely restore diplomatic and trade relations’ between Thailand and Saudi Arabia. Political, economic and trade cooperation was agreed between the two nations in January 2022.

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  • Pronto launches ‘Stranger Things’ cafe

    Pronto launches ‘Stranger Things’ cafe

    Stranger Things may not be as popular as Spy X Family in Japan, but it has enough of a following to deserve a cafe! From July 6 to September 9, Japanese cafe Pronto’s Shibuya Fukuras branch will get a Stranger Things makeover called “Stranger Pronto”. The collaboration coincides with the recent release of the later half of Season 4 of the world-famous Netflix series. The cafe will be decorated in a Stranger Things theme and include a completely Stranger Things-themed menu, photo spots, artwork, and more.

    Menu items are based on characters from Stranger Things Seasons 1 through 4, including main character Eleven’s first burger (and of course, her favorite waffles), a roast beef pasta plated to look like the infamous Demogorgon monster, and Nancy’s Halloween Party mocktail. There’s even a cream soda made to look like the Upside Down (not pictured above but on the full menu).

    Some art they’ll have on display includes trick art of a Demogorgon coming out of a door, the famous Christmas light wall at the Byers’ house, the fiery road to Hawkins (possible spoiler), and the Surfer Boy Pizza van.

    There are markedly more references to Season 4 than the earlier seasons–likely due to its recent release–so it may be better to pay a visit after you’ve watched it all. The Shibuya Fukuras branch is open year-round, but if you want to visit the Upside Down, you’ll need to stop by between July 6 and September 9. We promise you’ll make it out alive!

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  • $4 Starbucks coffee has become a daily staple

    $4 Starbucks coffee has become a daily staple

    While the franchise’s 2021 financial results took a hit because of the Covid-19 pandemic, a tangible gain has been the Starbucks VND90,000 ($4)coffee becoming a daily staple in Vietnam.

    Starbucks Vietnam general manager Patricia Marques said that despite the impacts of the nine-week social distancing orders in 2021, the global coffee brand has built up a regular customer base for its coffee worth VND90,000-100,000.

    She said it has also established more outlets away from the downtown in new urban areas, buildings, and local communities. While people used to prefer living close to the center of a locality, they are willing to live a little further away these days, she said.

    Starbucks Vietnam closed three outlets but opened nine new ones in 2021. Between December 2021 and January 2022, it opened another six: three in Hanoi; two in HCMC; and one in the southern province of Binh Duong.

    In Vietnam, Starbucks currently has 77 outlets whose takeaway sales have grown amid Covid-19 outbreaks.

    Marques said she expected instability to continue in Vietnam’s food and beverage market this year, but takeaway revenue, non-cash payment, and e-commerce would continue to grow.

    While there is still a lot of vacant space, it will not be easy for food and beverage businesses to find satisfactory locations at a reasonable price, she said. Citing data from a partner, she said the rent of commercial premises in Vietnam increased by 3 percent, while it decreased 10 percent in Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos.

    According to the brands’ official websites, chains with the highest number of outlets in Vietnam are the domestic brands Highlands (462 stores), The Coffee House (146), and Trung Nguyen (89).

    U.S.-based Starbucks made consolidated revenues of $29.1 billion in the fiscal year 2021 (ending in the third quarter of 2021), up 24 percent against over 2020.

    In the fiscal year 2022, the brand expects global earnings of $32.5-33 billion, beating Wall Street’s estimate of $32.07 billion, and plans to open about 2,000 new outlets globally, three-quarters of them outside the U.S. According to data recorded by Statista, as of November 2021, Starbucks had 33,833 outlets worldwide.

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  • Low-cost café franchising booms despite Covid

    Low-cost café franchising booms despite Covid

    Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, more and more low-price cafés are franchising and doing well. At 9.00 every day a Napoli café franchisee on Dong Nai Road, District 10, HCMC is crowded. Its owner, Hoang, says: “We directly serve hundreds of customers a day. The number of customers making orders via apps is double that.”

    A café franchised by Milano on Pham Van Chieu Road, Go Vap District, also gets hundreds of customers daily, one of its employees says.

    Many other similar outlets are also making good profits despite the pandemic, mainly selling through apps and e-commerce websites.

    Nguyen Duc Hung, the founder of Napoli Coffee, said that after starting in 2010 his company has so far franchised 3,000 outlets which fetch hundreds of billions of dong annually.

    “We franchise an average of two to three coffee shops a month. Some of our partners want to open more shops though they already own five”.

    Now there are thousands of Milano franchisees across the country. Trung Nguyen E-Coffee franchised coffee shops are present in 54 cities and provinces.

    The franchisors do not seek royalties for their trademarks or other such fees, and most of their profits come instead from the construction and decoration of coffee shops or sales of packaged coffee and beverages they produce

    Napoli offers three franchising packages costing VND70-350 million for cafes of 50-100 square meters in size. The packages include a five-year warranty, decoration, furniture, lighting, uniforms, and the coffee-making process, and exclude the costs of sanitary equipment and salaries.

    Trung Nguyen E-Coffee offers franchising packages worth VND65-175 million.

    Le Anh Tu, a lecturer at Van Lang University in HCMC, said the low-price café franchising model thrives despite Covid because franchisors support franchisees a lot, and products are sold at reasonable prices like VND12,000-30,000 for a cup of coffee.

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  • Hey! Kafe ramps up local expansion plan

    Hey! Kafe ramps up local expansion plan

    Indonesia-based digitally-native beverage startup, Hey! Kafe, is expanding its local footprint with 300 stores by the end of next year.

    According to the company, the brand’s expansion plan will be supported by an asset-light model backed by technology. That means a majority of its outlets will be compact booths that minimize capital expenditure and facilitate Grab & Go delivery service.

    Online delivery orders are projected to account for 70 percent of the brand’s sales.

    Founded by Edward Djaja, who is also the founder of Seven Retail, Hey! Kafe has opened 60 stores across the country since its launch in June last year.

    Focusing on the product development process, Hey! Kafe tests more than 20 product concepts each month, targeting the young customer segment with more than 12,000 cups of beverages sold daily.

    “Here in Hey! Kafe, our north star metric is same-store sales growth, which enables the brand to achieve stellar unit economics,” said Djaja. “We are proud to say that our strategy has resulted in a payback period of under 12 months, which is a key milestone for us to scale rapidly in a sustainable manner in the coming years.”

    The beverage retailer is supported by several investors, including Trihill Capital, which backed the company in the seed round. Besides its expansion plan, Hey! Kafe also plans to launch an in-house mobile application next year.

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  • World’s first Oreo cafe launches in US

    World’s first Oreo cafe launches in US

    A sweets shop at New Jersey’s American Dream mall just got even sweeter. The first-ever Oreo cafe opened last week on the top floor of the candy department store IT’SUGAR, a candy and gift shop that measures 22,000 square feet across three levels. The store features a menu of Oreo-inspired desserts, including do-it-your-self customizable treats, and limited-edition cookie merchandise.

    Located in the Meadowlands complex in East Rutherford, American Dream is a 3 million square foot commercial and entertainment center that opened in 2019 after nearly two decades of delays.

    In addition to dozens of retailers and food vendors, the mall includes DreamWorks Water Park, the largest indoor water park in North America, a Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park, an indoor ski and snow resort, LEGOLAND, an aquarium, mini-golf, and more.

    The immersive Oreo cafe includes a treats bar where visitors can customize sweets or pick from the menu of Oreo desserts, like a Waffle Sundae with baked-in Oreo pieces and Oreo cookies & cream cheesecake with Oreo cookie mousse.

    Visitors can build their own treats by choosing a dessert base, which can be a waffle, ice cream sandwich, cone, or milkshake, and then pick from more than a dozen toppings. According to the shop, there are over 200 possible combinations. Lovers of the famous cookie can even purchase Oreo products and merchandise, like tote bags, apparel, and home decor.

    The Oreo cookie actually has roots in the area. Just across the Hudson River, the cookie was invented at the former Nabisco factory, the present-day site of Chelsea Market. Nabisco wanted to create a cookie to compete with Hydrox, a creme-filled sandwich cookie. The company’s lead food scientist Sam Porcello created the recipe for the filling and the Oreo Biscuit was first sold to a grocer in Hoboken in 1912. Today, over 60 billion Oreo cookies are sold each year around the world.

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  • Cafe de Coral Group appoints new managing director

    Cafe de Coral Group appoints new managing director

    Café de Coral has promoted Piony Leung to managing director (Hong Kong) with immediate effect.  In her new position, Leung reports to group CEO Peter Lo and manages business operations and provides strategic leadership across Café de Coral Group’s business in the city, including quick-service restaurants, casual dining, and institutional catering. She will also play a pivotal role in meeting the company’s growth goals in the Hong Kong F&B sector.

    Piony was previously managing director (quick-service restaurants) of Café de Coral Group, and boasts more than 25 years of experience in the retail and fast-moving consumer goods industries. Under her leadership in 2020, the group’s quick-service restaurants business took a number of actions to address weak market conditions, shifted marketing focus to promote take-away and delivery services, redesigned menus to meet changing demand, and introduced an e-commerce platform for selling popular seasonal products such as poon choi and party sets.

    “In the face of unprecedented challenges, I am deeply impressed by our frontline staff who have gone above and beyond to service our customers while doing their best to meet our business goals. Although the economic outlook remains uncertain, I am committed to working side by side with my team members to explore future business opportunities and retain the Group’s leadership position in this rapidly changing market,” she commented.

    Speaking of Leung’s appointment, Lo said her leadership skills had led the team through major market shocks and adapted to the challenging business landscape.

    “In the post-pandemic era, it is essential that the group is able to capture opportunities bought by the fast-changing market and consumer behaviours. I have every confidence that she will be able to maximize business synergies and build a stronger brand portfolio by integrating the quick service restaurants, casual dining and institutional catering business as a whole, offering a wide range of food options that cater to the diverse tastes of the greater community,” Lo explained.

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  • Costa sliming down Chinese cafe network

    Costa sliming down Chinese cafe network

    British coffee franchise Costa will pull back further from the China market by early next year.

    In response to a dip in consumer demand, the Coca-Cola-owned firm reduced its physical stores within the territory by around 10 percent last month, half of which were located in the capital, Beijing. It has also shuttered its entire network in the coastal city of Qingdao.

    The brand’s long-standing aspirations for China have been frustrated during the Covid-19 pandemic, caused by rising unemployment and other economic factors hit by the outbreak. The firm’s operations have also been strongly impacted by the virus within its home market, with 1650 staff dropped off the payroll in the UK

    Costa has had significant difficulties facing the competitive Chinese coffee shop market, having launched just a sixth of its 2500-store target network since opening in 2006. Despite this, recent statements by the firm reaffirm its commitment to the market.

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  • World’s first % Arabica drive-thru store piping up for its first serve

    World’s first % Arabica drive-thru store piping up for its first serve

    Japanese gourmet coffee chain % Arabica is to open its first drive-thru concept store, in Murouj, Kuwait.

    The Murouj cafe is the brand’s eighth in the country and it’s first in the world to have a drive-thru facility. The launch comes just a month after the opening of the % Arabica Kuwait store in Mangaf.

    Designed by Japanese architecture firm no.10 of Nomurakougeisha, the Kuwait Murouj cafe houses indoor plants and glass-house drinking spaces, creating a giant open space filled with natural light.

    Besides a drive-thru lane, the store also features an outdoor drinking area for customers.

    % Arabica is also planning to expand in Southeast Asian markets with Indonesia and Malaysia as their next destinations. The brand has revealed it will open its first outlet in Malaysia soon, in Kuala Lumpur.

  • New Tokyo Starbucks cafe features focus booth

    New Tokyo Starbucks cafe features focus booth

    Starbucks Japan has teamed with Think Lab to launch a store concept in Tokyo where customers can “focus”.

    The first floor is designed as a normal Starbucks’ cafe where customers can order by phone and pay via an app.

    Upstairs, on the second floor is a working area called Smart Lounge for solo visitors or group meetings. The space also provides projector, semi-private tables designed with teleconferences in mind.

    “The specially designed contactless hand-off counter provides customers with safe, familiar and convenient Starbucks experience while they connect virtually with colleagues or friends in the focus areas upstairs,” the company said in a statement.

    Starbucks’ customers can reserve a table or space via a Think Lab’s app.

    Think Lab describes itself as a creator of innovative, solo working spaces based on research into the science of concentration.

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  • India’s Cafe Coffee Day shuts 280 stores

    India’s Cafe Coffee Day shuts 280 stores

    Indian coffee chain Cafe Coffee Day shuttered 280 outlets between April and June due to low profitability and potentially rising costs.

    The firm, which now operates 1480 outlets, has also reported a decline in average daily sales from 15,739 cups to 15,445 cups during the period. This was counterbalanced by an uptick in Coffee Day’s vending machine count from 49,397 to 59,115 units year on year.

    “Export operations have been temporarily stopped due to lower margins and higher working capital requirement and around 280 outlets are closed during the quarter based on various factors including the profitability, future increase in major expenses,” said a spokesperson for the firm.

    The firm has struggled since the apparent suicide of founder VG Siddhartha a year ago. Siddhartha founded Coffee Day Enterprises in the late 1990s, years before Starbucks made its Indian debut, building a network of 1700 outlets – 10 times the size of Starbucks.

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  • Luckin Coffee names new chairman and CEO after founder ousted

    Luckin Coffee names new chairman and CEO after founder ousted

    Luckin Coffee has named Jinyi Guo as chairman and CEO as the Chinese chain tries to move past an accounting scandal that nearly brought it down.

    Guo, a director, and former acting CEO, replaces founder and former chairman Charles Zhengyao Lu, who was voted out by shareholders, the company said Monday in a statement. Yang Cha, Feng Liu, Jie Yang, and Ying Zeng were also appointed as independent directors, while David Hui Li, Erhai Liu, and Sean Shao left the board following an extraordinary general meeting July 5 and board meeting July 12.

    While shareholders voted to remove Lu and the other three directors, some investors cried foul because Lu had nominated two of the new members to the board, potentially giving him ongoing influence at the company, according to the Wall Street Journal.

    Lu has come under fire amid an accounting scandal that has already led to the firing of Luckin’s CEO and made its stock nearly worthless. Chinese and U.S. regulators have been investigating the company over fabricated transactions that inflated net sales by about US$300 million last year.

    The scandal has rocked the Xiamen-based company once considered among China’s brightest growth stories, sending the US-listed stock plunging 93 percent this year. The situation is also a black eye for China Inc as the US Congress moves closer to passing legislation that could bar Chinese companies from trading on US stock exchanges.

    In May, Luckin Coffee dismissed CEO Jenny Zhiya Qian, COO Jian Liu, and some employees who reported to them, after uncovering the scheme that funneled funds to the company from several third parties with links to the participants. The board said it fired the executives based on evidence showing their participation in the false transactions.

    Lu became a billionaire after his fast-growing Chinese chain went public in the US, but much of his wealth was wiped out by the plunge in Luckin’s stock. Lu last month resigned as chairman of Car Inc, China’s biggest rental-car fleet operator, as scrutiny increased over Luckin and the accounting scandal.

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  • DC Super Heroes Cafe Quits in Singapore

    DC Super Heroes Cafe Quits in Singapore

    Comic book-themed DC Super Heroes Cafe is to close down in Singapore after five years.

    The company posted a message on Facebook this week telling fans its store at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands will not reopen after the Covid-19 retail trading restrictions are lifted this Friday, deciding to end its tenancy during the city’s circuit-breaker period.

    While the company’s other cafe, at Takashimaya in Orchard Road, will reopen on Friday it will soon transition to another brand, not yet revealed, “in the very near future”.

    “It’s been a super-fun, wonderful and memorable five years!,” the cafe said on Facebook. “However, all good things must come to an end.

    “We would like to thank you dear heroes and past customers for your incredible support. We will close this cafe page in due time.”

    The news was greeted with more than 110 comments, largely expressing sadness over the closure and reminiscing about family events held there.

    The DC Super Heroes Cafe at SM Megamall in Manila, the Philippines, has also been affected by lockdowns relating to the Covid-19 pandemic. That store has been selling merchandise online while closed but will soon reopen in the mall once government trading restrictions are lifted.

    The cafe concept was inspired by films, TV series, animated movies and comic books featuring characters licensed to DC Comics. The cafe concept was created by Almerak Corp, in partnership with Warner Bros Consumer Products.

    The Philippines cafe opened in June 2018.