Italians Once Hated Starbucks, Now Can’t Get Enough – Here’s Why

Starbucks Expands Presence in Italy

Starbucks, the American global coffee chain, is expanding its business in Italy.

According to Italy’s Adnkronos news agency, Starbucks opened a new Via Cola di Rienzo 23 store. This is a bustling shopping area near the Vatican on the 23rd (local time). This is the fourth Starbucks store in Rome.

Since the opening of the first Starbucks store in the Castel Romano Shopping Mall on the outskirts of Rome in April last year, more stores have opened this year. It opened in the city center near the Pantheon and inside Termini Station, Rome’s public transportation hub.

Vincenzo Catrambone, the head of Starbucks’ Italian branch, mentioned that Starbucks remains committed to investing in Rome. He said, “We won’t make this our last opening this year, and we’re prepared to surprise Italy.”

Starbucks, which started in Seattle, USA, in 1971, is the coffee brand with the most coffee shops worldwide. As of November 2022, it owns 35,711 stores in 80 countries.

Challenges in Entering the Italian Market

Despite this, Starbucks only set foot in Italy, a country that can be considered the home of coffee, in 2018, 47 years after its founding. This was because the proud Italian citizens did not welcome Starbucks’ entry.

When Starbucks planned to open its first store in Milan, Italian citizens protested fiercely, including setting fire to a tree that Starbucks had planted in the Piazza del Duomo.

In particular, Italy, with its strong preference for espresso and a culture of drinking coffee quickly while standing at a bar rather than sitting and enjoying it like Starbucks, led many to predict that Starbucks’ expansion would not be easy.

However, contrary to these concerns, Starbucks has achieved success in the Italian market and is aggressively expanding its business.

So far, Starbucks has concentrated its stores in affluent areas with many foreign residents, such as Milan in northern Italy. However, Starbucks has recently been making inroads into the southern regions, including the capital, Rome. By the end of this year, Starbucks plans to increase the number of stores across Italy to 37.

By. Shin Soo Jung