[ad_1]
“Each place has its own local brand, and these local brands are now the leaders,” Mr. Guo said. “I believe that in China, anything can happen in a place that is so conducive for innovation and entrepreneurship.”
In May, Luckin sued Starbucks, arguing that the American chain had signed exclusive contracts with commercial property owners that barred other coffee shops from entering the space if a Starbucks was already there.
It’s not going to be easy to oust Starbucks, which has 3,400 stores in more than 140 cities in China and plans to nearly double that by 2022.
Ben Cavender, senior analyst of China Market Research, a consultancy based in Shanghai, estimates that it has a 70 percent share of the market, blazing past other coffee chains like McDonald’s McCafe and Costa Coffee. But the company must prove it can stay on the cutting edge.
“The challenge is that consumers are much pickier about the experience they get now; they have other good options that have standardized quality and potentially a more interesting environment,” Mr. Cavender said. “So Starbucks has to do a better job. It’s not a clear win anymore.”
Mr. Johnson said that Starbucks began discussing partnering with Alibaba about a year ago.
When asked about the competition posed by Luckin, Mr. Johnson said, “I think certainly as people look at the market opportunity in China as it relates to coffee, we expect there will continue to be more competition.”
What Starbucks has going for it is a large following, especially in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai. On Tuesday, as the summer sun bore down on the trendy Sanlitun neighborhood of Beijing, customers lined up for coffees. Wang Qi, 25, who works in media, said she preferred Starbucks to Luckin because of the environment. “You can sit down and have a proper cup of coffee,” Ms. Wang said.
[ad_2]
Source link
No comments:
Post a Comment