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Coca-Cola was swift to respond, however, announcing its own global coffee partnership with illycaffé of Italy only a couple of weeks later (see page 9).
China, where Starbucks has established a chain of more than 540 coffee shops, will be the first international market where ready to drink (RTD) coffee beverages are distributed through the Pepsi system to groceries and convenience stores, as well as other locations.
The Starbucks-Pepsi venture will later be extended to other select markets, excluding Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, where Starbucks already distributes RTD coffee beverages in partnership with other companies.
“Coffee is the heart of our business,” said Gerry Lopez, president of Starbucks global consumer products group. “With our coffee expertise and PepsiCo ’s extensive sales and distribution network, this joint venture will allow us to provide an authentic Starbucks coffee experience to millions more consumers around the world, any time and anywhere they want it. This could include countries that may not currently have Starbucks stores.”
Said Michael White, CEO of PepsiCo International and vice chairman of PepsiCo: “We are very excited about building on the success of the North American Coffee Partnership between PepsiCo and Starbucks, which essentially created the ready to drink coffee market in the US and Canada. As we look ahead, we see opportunities to bring outstanding Starbucks ready to drink coffee products to consumers in many more countries.”
