Starbucks Global Expansion Target Increases to 40,000 More Than 10,000

Starbucks recently stated that it plans to set a global store target of 40,000 stores, which has increased 10,000 more than its previous target. The Chinese market is particularly important in the company's plans to open stores overseas. Jinlong Wang, president of Starbucks Greater China, said the company believes that China will become Starbucks’ largest outside North America in the next few years.

In accelerating the opening of the store, Starbucks also strengthened the company's music business. Starbucks is working with Apple Computer’s iTunes, the coffee giant intends to create a Starbucks-branded music store within Apple’s flagship online music store.

Martin Coles, international president of Starbucks coffee business, said that the company's growth in the international market has benefited from the excavation of the existing market's retail potential, as well as the expansion of emerging markets.

Starbucks’ appetite for the globally announced plan is greater than its previous plan. Previously, Starbucks set goals for its next 3 to 5 years of development: to open 15,000 stores in both local and overseas markets, increase annual revenue by 20%, and maintain an annual profit increase of 20% to 25%. . The new plan will increase 15,000 to 20,000, which means that the US and overseas markets will add up and Starbucks will open 40,000 stores.

While increasing the number of stores opened, Starbucks also gave clear steps for expansion. In 2007 the company will be stationed in Brazil, Russia, India and Egypt. Among them, the company will set foot on the African continent for the first time by collaborating with MSHAshaya, and will set up the first Starbucks store in Cairo at the end of this year. The company stated in a statement that Cairo’s growing middle class has seen the company’s broad prospects for development. Starbucks will bring its own coffee to the continent of coffee, the birthplace of coffee, during the year. At present, about 5% of Starbucks' high-end Arabic coffee is sourced from Africa. In addition, Starbucks will join forces with MHA Alshaya to enter the Russian market and plan to take root in Moscow in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007.

Starbucks entered Brazil, and this Latin America's largest market is scheduled for the same year. The preferred address is São Paulo. The Indian market is still at the stage of finding partners. The industry predicts that New Delhi and Mumbai will be the first stop for Starbucks to enter India.

The company plans to cover 40 countries in the world in 2007. It will take another five years to open up new battlefields in 14 countries. By 2011, the company will reach 54 countries and regions outside of the United States.

Of course, Starbucks will not relax China's vast market. Coles pointed out that "the number of Chinese stores should have thousands, not hundreds."