Sep 7, 2007

Starbucks Makes It to Russia


Democracy held up in customs.

With the hiss of an espresso machine and a note in Russian explaining the meanings of “tall,” “grande” and “venti,” Starbucks opened its first coffee shop in Russia on Thursday in a mall in this city near Moscow. The opening sealed a victory for the company in a fight with a trademark squatter who had kept Starbucks from coming to Russia for more than three years, just as a coffeehouse culture was emerging here. Starbucks refused to pay the squatter to yield the Starbucks name in Russia and eventually prevailed in court.

The menu of basic coffee drinks is the same as in the United States, and indeed everywhere in the world, Ms. Pucik said. The sandwiches and baked goods are adapted for local tastes. The Russian shop, for example, offers a mushroom-and-cheese sandwich.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/07/business/worldbusiness/07sbux.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

3 comments:

Vika said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Vika said...

Oh, man. First it was the Big Mac index, then it was the IKEA index, now it's the Double Latte index.

jaybird said...

They tried to transfer T. You can only begin to imagine his response...