Coffee Culture Thrives in Moscow
"Starbucks, the Seattle-based corporation with almost 9,000 company-operated stores around the world, opened its first Russian venue last fall in a suburban shopping mall in Khimki. The largest coffee shop brand in Britain, Costa Coffee, opened the chain's 1,000th shop last month on Pushkinskaya Square, ambitiously planning on 200 more locations in Russia over the next five years. To these seemingly late newcomers, Moscow's ratio of one coffeehouse for every 3,187 people is an opportunity for growth. Although arriving in an already established coffeehouse scene in Moscow, Western chains are banking on their brand familiarity, the attractiveness of quick counter service and Russians' growing incomes. "Moscow, with its vibrant economy and cosmopolitan culture, is the right place to start in Russia. For a market with a quickly emerging and upwardly mobile middle class, Moscow has a low concentration of cafes," said Mojtaba Akhbari of Starbucks, which opened two more locations in March at the Moskva-City business center and at the Belaya Dacha Mega Mall." (Mario Antonova, The Moscow Times)
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