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The network of coffee shops in Russia that were once owned by Starbucks Corp. were reopened on Thursday under the name Stars Coffee, the latest significant corporation rebranding following a months-long Western corporate flight from the nation.
Before the stores open on Friday, rapper Timati and co-owner and restaurateur Anton Pinskiy revealed the new brand at a crowded premiere in the heart of Moscow. The logo depicts an image of a woman with a star over her head.
Timati, who claimed they had tried to maintain some continuity after being forbidden from using the Starbucks design, cited the circular form and “feminine gender” as examples. He claimed that these features contrasted favourably with the new brand’s dark, cigar-like “masculine colour.”
People may have different impressions, Pinskiy noted. But if you compare, you won’t discover anything in common but the circle.
Starbucks pointed to a prior statement in which it said the firm had made the decision to withdraw and no longer had a brand presence in the Russian market but declined to comment on the similarity of the logo and name.
Timati claimed that although the team had to find new suppliers because Starbucks has its own production and resource base, there had been no issues.
According to Pinskiy, Stars Coffee sources its beans from Latin America and Africa, with suppliers for other goods established in Russia.
He claimed, “We merely found other suppliers, got the right roasters, and because the baristas combined it all properly, we have a product that we think will be competitive.
Starbucks, located in Seattle, announced its decision to leave Russia after nearly 15 years in late May. Starbucks helped popularise takeaway coffee in a nation that traditionally values tea.
Alshaya Group, Starbucks’ licensee, operated 130 of the company’s locations in Russia, where it employed close to 2,000 people. Shops would progressively reopen during August and September, according to Pinskiy.
Greater Trend
After Starbucks dropped its brand from Russia, global franchise operator Alshaya, founded in Kuwait, lost interest in conducting business, Timati told Reuters. An inquiry for comment from Alshaya was not immediately answered.
There were several participants in the tender, which we won. We then bought it and created our own brand, he added.
The agreement reflects a broader pattern among Western firms that has been transforming the nation’s corporate and retail environments as the Ukrainian crisis approaches its sixth month.
While McDonald’s Corp., whose outlets are now known as Vkusno & tochka, did not disclose a price, Renault sold its majority ownership in the automaker Avtovaz to a Russian player for just one rouble.
Both of those agreements had buyback provisions, but Pinskiy claimed that because Starbucks operated in Russia as a franchise, those provisions did not apply to it.
He declined to provide details on the arrangement with Alshaya’s financial details. Pinskiy claimed, “We have invested just as much as we paid them. “This (is) a costly pleasure.”
