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Starbucks are doubling in Milan
06 July, Corriere della Sera
Not only Piazza Cordusio, where the first shop will open on 6th September. Starbucks is ready to double with another opening already by October. The second shop will be in Corso Garibaldi at the corner with Via XXV Aprile, in the place currently occupied by the chain store DMail, acquired by Percassi in 2016, the same company that has the exclusive right on Starbucks in Italy. Not only. The American brand should arrive soon also in the Malpensa airport, in the departures area, always replacing a DMail shop. Sea is already assessing the preliminary agreement. Finally, according to some financial sources, Starbucks is negotiating a store in Piazza San Francesco, beside the church, in the former Credito Artigiano offices. It would be a challenge to Lavazza, as its first and only flagship store is located right in the area. Moreover, the shop will open a few steps away from the Nespresso boutique (in Piazza Liberty, where the new Apple store will open on 26th July) and near the Illy shop (in Via Monte Napoleone).
The shop in Corso Garibaldi at the corner with Via XXV April will be a traditional shop, smaller than the 2,400 Sq m shop – Europe’s biggest Starbucks – which will occupy the former Poste Italiane office in Piazza Cordusio. The property, which is managed by Kryalos, has been under construction for one year and a half and is now ready for the opening.
The projects are confidential, but there are increasingly frequent surveys in the area around Via XXV Aprile, and the DMail staff has been informed about the change of management. After all, this is a strategic location since it’s near Porta Nuova (Starbucks also evaluated the area near Gae Aulenti). The objectives of the company are clear, even though the executive manager Howard Schultz, which managed to enter the Italian market after having attempted for years, has just resigned and the sales have reduced globally. While in the US there are more Starbucks than Mc Donald’s, Italy (especially Milan) is a new market where to bet.
In the city, according to the figures of the Chamber of Commerce, a new bar opens every day. The balance of openings and closures remains positive, and the industry is worth no less than 450 million a year. International coffee shops represent only 8% of the market, but the quota might grow up to 12% in the future, with Starbucks leading the trend. In the meanwhile, the partner Percassi is active on different fronts.
The company, in fact, with the intervention of Angelo Moratti, first started a partnership with Princi, whose bakeries have also been considered by Starbucks as the possible location of its shops. Now, Percassi opened in San Pietro a Wagamama restaurant, an Asian cuisine restaurant joint. According to rumours, Percassi is also negotiating the acquisition of the old cinema in Corso Vittorio Emanuele (Beni Stabili owns the building) from Coin Excelsior to open there a Victoria’s Secret store. Meanwhile, Coin might be looking for a location in Piazza Cordusio, an area that is going through a revival.
Source: Corriere della Sera
Translator: Cristina Ambrosi