Starbucks’ long-rumored expansion into Italy is finally reality. Its first Reserve Roastery in Europe is opening tomorrow in a opulent former post office on the Piazza Cordusio in Milan.

The company describes the store as “both an homage to the city of Milan and a celebration of everything Starbucks has learned about coffee in its 47-year history.” The Reserve store will offer the coffee beverages that one would expect but also artisanal cocktails and baked goods from Rocco Princi.

Photograph courtesy of Starbucks

The 25,000-square-foot Reserve Roastery in Milan creates 300 new jobs and is to be followed by regular cafes operated with local franchisee Percassi.

Photograph courtesy of Starbucks

The Italian entry has been a long time coming. Howard Schultz, Starbucks’ longtime CEO and now chairman emeritus, mentioned Italy as a target market as early as 1998, telling The New Yorker that to open in the country would be “to climb Mount Everest.” That year, Starbucks did expand internationally to London, but Italy was still two decades away.

Photograph courtesy of Starbucks

“During my first trip to Milan in 1983, I was captivated by the sense of community I found in the city’s espresso bars — the moments of human connection that passed so freely and genuinely between baristas and their customers,” Schultz said in a statement. “The opening of the Milan Roastery is the story of Starbucks coming full circle.”

Photograph courtesy of Starbucks

After an invite-only gala tonight, the Reserve Roastery will open its doors to customers Friday at 9 a.m. Seattle and Shanghai have the only other Starbucks Reserve stores so far; more of the luxurious cafes are planned for Chicago, New York and Tokyo.</s>Starbucks Reserve Roastery opening inside the historic Poste Italiane building in Piazza Cordusio is the company’s first location in Italy, with plans to bring additional cafés to Milan beginning late 2018

Following the Roastery legacy of Seattle and Shanghai, Milan is the new location for the Starbucks upmarket coffee house.

Located in the heart of Milan’s business district in Piazza Cordusio, inside the historical Poste Italiane building it has been declared “the most beautiful Starbucks in the world” by Business Wire magazine.

The Arriviamo Bar serves up special cocktails and the Princi Bakery offers fresh breads, focciacia and other treats.</s>Starbucks Reserve Roastery opening inside the historic Poste building in Piazza Cordusio is the company’s first location in Italy, with plans to bring additional cafés to Milan beginning late 2018

Designed as an homage to the Italian espresso culture that inspired Howard Schultz 35 years ago to create the Starbucks Experience, the 2,300-square-meter (25,000-square-foot) Reserve Roastery showcases the theatre of coffee roasting, brewing and mixology in the epicenter of fashion and culture

The premium Reserve experience will offer limited availability, small-lot Arabica coffee sourced from 30 countries around the world, roasted for the first time in Europe and paired with freshly baked artisanal food from local baker Rocco Princi

Roastery opening creates nearly 300 jobs in Italy; Starbucks also invests in additional career-building by bringing its world-class Apprenticeship Program to Milan as well as collaborating with the Fondazione Don Gino Rigoldi and La Scala Academy

Today, Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) celebrates the opening of its first store in Italy and the most beautiful Starbucks in the world: the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Milan. The highly anticipated Milan Roastery is the crown jewel of Starbucks global retail footprint – a place where Italian customers can come to discover the art and science of coffee in a breath-taking environment that is both an homage to the city of Milan and a celebration of everything Starbucks has learned about coffee in its 47-year history. Following a grand opening celebration this evening, the Roastery will open its doors to all customers tomorrow morning, September 7, at 9 a.m. CET.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180905006047/en/

“During my first trip to Milan in 1983, I was captivated by the sense of community I found in the city’s espresso bars – the moments of human connection that passed so freely and genuinely between baristas and their customers. The opening of the Milan Roastery is the story of Starbucks coming full circle,” said Howard Schultz, chairman emeritus of Starbucks. “Everything we have experienced, since that first moment of inspiration 35 years ago to now being a daily part of millions of people’s lives around the world, we bring with great respect to Italy. On behalf of the 350,000 partners who wear the green apron and millions before them, I am so proud and humbled to bring our Italian customers an experience that is the very best of Starbucks.”

Starbucks arrival in Italy – the company’s 78th global market – is unlike any other market opening in its history. Milan marks the first time Starbucks has established its retail presence in a new country with the Roastery format, of which only two others exist in the world: the Seattle Roastery, which opened in 2014, and the Roastery in Shanghai, which debuted in 2017. Standing at 2,300 square meters (25,000 square feet), the Milan Roastery is in Milan’s Palazzo della Poste on the Piazza Cordusio – only streets away from iconic landmarks such as the Duomo di Milano, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II and Teatro alla Scala.

Starbucks opened its first store in Europe 20 years ago in London. Since then, it has grown in partnership with strategic licensees to more than 3,100 stores in 40 countries across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The introduction of the company-operated Reserve Roastery in Milan reinforces the company’s investment in its premium brand as part of its overall growth strategy, which also serves as a pipeline of retail and product innovation for its core stores around the world. Following the opening of the Roastery, Starbucks will bring additional cafés to Milan with licensed partner Percassi beginning late 2018. These stores will reflect the unique coffee culture of the Italian market, while also offering Starbucks iconic beverage and food offerings.

“We have taken our time to ensure our entry into Italy is done thoughtfully and respectfully,” said Kevin Johnson, chief executive officer, Starbucks. “The introduction of our Roastery and premium Reserve brand will set the stage for the long-term development of our core store portfolio with our world-class licensee partner, Percassi.”

At the Milan Roastery, heritage and innovation take center stage against a backdrop of stunning design and immersive discovery. As customers enter the building, they are met with a jaw-dropping view that spans every aspect of the Roastery experience. Vibrant colors reflective of the Italian fashion and design community greet each person, and over the course of the day, the space transforms from the light filtering through the glass ceiling.

At the heart of the environment is a fully functioning Scolari coffee roaster, manufactured just miles outside of the center of Milan. To the right, customers will find the main bar, where classic espresso beverages mingle with cutting-edge coffee innovation. The wood-fronted bar features fluting, which echoes a motif found in Italian architecture throughout history, and is topped with marble sourced from the world-famous quarries of Tuscany. Upstairs on the mezzanine, customers can discover ArriviamoTM Bar – where mixologists are on hand to create specialty cocktails behind a 10-meter-long (30 feet) marble bar carved from a single block of Calacatta Macchia Vecchia. And finally, to the left, customers will see upon entering a PrinciTM Bakery, complete with a wood-fired oven, built brick by brick, onsite by hand using a crew of masons and artisans.

“We have spent the past year living and breathing the city of Milan, working closely with dozens of local artisans to bring to life our most beautiful retail experience that engages each one of our customers’ senses – sight, sound, touch, smell, and of course, taste,” said Liz Muller, chief design officer, Starbucks. “From the palladiana flooring that was chiseled by hand to the bright green clackerboard made by Italian craftsman Solari, everything you see in the Roastery is intentional, offering moments of discovery and transparency.”

Throughout the Roastery, the physical retail environment is complemented by an interactive augmented reality (AR) experience, encouraging customers to use their mobile device to uncover more about Starbucks Reserve® coffees, the roasting process and the company. The centerpiece of the AR experience is a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall visual representation of Starbucks history and its coffee – engraved in brass by local craftsmen, burnished to an ombre finish and backlit to bring warmth to the story.

Outside on the building’s terrace, customers can enjoy the full range of Roastery coffees, cocktails and cuisine in a distinctly European environment – that of a street-side café. Also adorning the Roastery’s portico is a striking statue of a siren – the symbol of Starbucks steeped in classical lore – completely hand-carved in Carrara marble by Tuscan sculptor Giovanni Balderi.

Coffee from Around the World Roasted, Brewed and Packaged in Milan

At the heart of Starbucks premium Reserve brand are the rare and exotic high-quality Arabica coffees, ethically sourced from more than 30 countries around the world. Each coffee is handpicked by a team of Starbucks coffee quality experts, offering both unique taste profiles and stories from the regions where they were grown.

These coffees are brought to life by seven highly skilled roasters who have spent nearly a year training in Starbucks roasting plants around the world, immersing in Starbucks 47 years of experience and leadership in coffee roasting. They apply their craft daily in the Milan Roastery, which is the first place in Europe where Starbucks unique, small-lot Reserve coffee will be roasted. The Roastery provides customers unprecedented visibility to all aspects of the roasting process, with a 360-degree walk-around view of the manufacturing site. This transparency into the science and craft starts with green coffee being poured out of burlap sacks, continues through the roaster and sweeping cooling trays, and reaches a dramatic crescendo as the 6.5-meter-high (22 feet) bronze cask unfolds like a blooming flower, allowing a glimpse inside of the de-gassing chamber – a natural part of the roasting process. From there, coffee whizzes overhead through copper pipes directly to silos at the coffee bars, where customers can enjoy a fresh cup of Reserve coffee, or to the in-house pack line to be packaged for distribution in Starbucks stores across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The coffee bar will serve as the stage where hundreds of baristas will handcraft a menu of more than 115 beverages across multiple brewing methods: ModBar® Pour Over, Chemex, Coffee Press, Siphon, Espresso, Cold Brew and the proprietary CloverTM Brewed coffee. The main bar will also feature a first-for-Starbucks affogato station, where ice cream is hand-crafted, made-to-order, using a unique and theatrical liquid nitrogen finish to create the perfect ice cream to be paired with a delicious shot of espresso.

And for customers wishing to take a piece of the Roastery experience home, is the Scooping Bar, where guests purchase specially packaged, freshly roasted coffee beans from Starbucks Reserve coffees, including some that are exclusive to the Milan Roastery. The display of coffee in bins and scooping silos and the grocery scales and paper packaging are evocative of the experience of buying dry goods by the gram, freshly packaged.

Showcasing the Best of Milan Baker Rocco Princi

In 2016, Starbucks announced a strategic partnership with Italian baker Rocco Princi, making his artisanal, freshly baked food the exclusive pairing to the company’s premium Reserve brand. Following the introduction of Princi food to the Seattle and Shanghai Roasteries last year, Princi is now available in the first Reserve store located in Starbucks headquarters in addition to the first standalone U.S. Princi store that opened this summer in Seattle.

The Princi Bakery in the Milan Roastery is anchored by a wood-fired oven made using an ancient technique, with a unique method of radiating heat using fire, creating Rocco Princi’s ultimate tool for making bread the way it’s meant to be done. The facing is a rough-cut Porfido Giallo, sourced nearby in the Lombardy region. In this area guests can also see the dough being made from the finest flour and water, a view of the whole process that is similar to the coffee journey on display elsewhere in the Roastery. Items baked in the Princi Bakery will be available both here and throughout the Roastery for customers looking to pair their coffee with the perfect bite – be it savory or sweet.

“Over the past few years with Starbucks, I’ve had the incredible privilege to share the flavors and passion of the Milanese people with customers in the U.S. and in China. I’m now grateful to return the same hospitality as I join the people of Milan in welcoming Starbucks to Italy,” said Rocco Princi, founder of Princi Bakeries.

Taking a Page from the Italians, Aperitivo Debuts at Arriviamo

Inspired by the Italian aperitivo – social cocktails paired with small delicacies in the early evening hours – the Milan Roastery will be the first Starbucks location to feature an Arriviamo Bar. Located on the mezzanine at the top of a sweeping staircase, Arriviamo is a destination for a carefully crafted cocktail or special coffee service.

At Arriviamo, a team of mixologists create beverages from a bespoke menu that draws on both the Italian palate and Starbucks coffee heritage. From classic Italian favorites such as the Spritz and Negroni to cold-brewed coffee cocktails that infuse flavor and craft, customers can witness a whole new theatre of experience that is both distinctive from and complementary to the bars on the main Roastery floor. In addition to serving aperitivo in the evening, customers can also enjoy coffee on the mezzanine – all while observing the Roastery and manufacturing experience from a new vantage point up above.

In preparation for opening, nearly 300 new careers began earlier this year as the Roastery hired on its inaugural team of partners (employees) – spanning barista and mixology positions, coffee roasters and manufacturers, and Princi bakers. Partners underwent minimum three months’ intensive training and will continue to see investments in learning and development as they grow their careers with Starbucks. Starbucks also brings its award-winning Apprenticeship Program to Milan at opening. Starbucks is already offering apprenticeships to baristas and mixologists, with six apprentices already enrolled. Each apprenticeship is a three-year program, through which partners receive 260 hours of off-the-job, sector-specific training to develop their talent and equip them for lasting, rewarding careers. As Starbucks grows in Italy, it will continue to invest in programs to advance meaningful careers for its partners.

Beyond its own doors, Starbucks will also focus on creating educational and career opportunity for youth across Milan. The Starbucks Foundation is partnering with the Fondazione Don Gino Rigoldi to create a bespoke program to support young people from disadvantaged areas of Milan who are at risk of marginalization and face significant barriers into employment. Simultaneously, The Starbucks Foundation is supporting programs in partnership with La Scala Academy, focused on scholarships, employability training and community engagement that offer students greater access to education and employment.

“Core to our business is creating positive social impact in the communities we serve around the world,” said Vivek Varma, president of The Starbucks Foundation. “We established The Starbucks Foundation more than 20 years ago to advance this mission, and with these initial investments in Italy, we aim to create new opportunity for youth in Milan while also laying a foundation for longer-term commitments to the Italian market.”

To mark the occasion, Starbucks partnered with the Comune di Milano and La Scala Academy to create a theatrical production that brings the stories of Mr. Schultz and Starbucks to life through a combination of film, live opera and orchestral performances. The event, with the patronage of Comune di Milano, will culminate in the Roastery being presented as a tribute to the city of Milan. Footage for media purposes will be shared online on Starbucks Newsroom in the coming days.

Since 1971, Starbucks Coffee Company has been committed to ethically sourcing and roasting high-quality arabica coffee. Today, with more than 25,000 stores around the globe, Starbucks is the premier roaster and retailer of specialty coffee in the world. Through our unwavering commitment to excellence and our guiding principles, we bring the unique Starbucks Experience to life for every customer through every cup. To share in the experience, please visit our stores or online at news.starbucks.com and Starbucks.com.</s>A view of the Starbucks store in Milan, Italy.

MILAN—Starbucks Corp. opens a coffee shop on average every four hours somewhere in the world. But this store is different. It is in Italy.

On Friday, the Seattle-based chain will start selling its American take on coffee in the home of espresso. After amassing more than 25,000 coffee shops in 78 countries, Starbucks is coming to Milan with a “reserve roastery” in a converted post office on a central square near the city’s famous Gothic cathedral.

No Frappuccinos. It will be only Starbucks’s third roastery after Seattle and Shanghai. In a sign of the expected difficulty in winning over</s>A trip that Howard Schultz took in 1983 to Italy provided the inspiration that turned Starbucks into an international coffee giant. Now, Starbucks is opening its third Reserve Roastery and its first store in Italy this week in Milan.</s>Starbucks Reserve Roastery Milan is a sight to see.</s>This week, Starbucks opens its first location in Italy. The new store is in Milan, which former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz credits with the inspiration for the company.</s>(CNN Money/CBS) — Thirty-five years after a trip to Milan inspired American entrepreneur Howard Schultz to transform Starbucks, the coffee chain has finally arrived in Italy.

Starbucks will open its first store in the country on Friday, cutting the ribbon on a massive “Reserve Roastery” in Milan that bears little resemblance to the small cafes frequented by Italians.

The premium store is located in a spacious former post office in Piazza Cordusio, just a few minutes walk from the landmark La Scala opera house.

It features a 30-foot bar carved from a single block of Tuscan marble.

The Milan roastery is Starbucks’ third after Seattle and Shanghai, and will sell “premium, small batch” coffees and food by Italian baker Rocco Princi, the company said.

And it will be aiming at the top end of the market. An espresso costs €1.80 ($2.10), much more than €1 ($1.16) price at many Italian cafes.

Starbucks opened 28,000 stores in 77 markets before coming to Italy, where coffee culture is taken seriously and purists most often drink espresso while standing at a cafe counter.

Jonny Forsyth, associate director of food and drink at market research firm Mintel, said the tried and tested strategy of offering super-sized drinks featuring large helpings of milk won’t work for Starbucks in Italy.

“Such cultural coffee differences cannot simply be ignored,” he said. “Starbucks’ new Italy stores are sensibly focusing on local market preferences such as espressos, as well as made-to-order ice cream and pizza rather than using the traditional Starbucks drink menu formula.”

That means Frappuccinos aren’t on the menu.

Still, younger Italians may well be intrigued by the Starbucks experience, where customers often linger in the store to chat with friends or work on a laptop.

“While snobbery might initially prevail, the younger generations are more open,” said Alexandre Loeur, senior analyst at market research company Euromonitor International. “Starbucks could do well, in the medium to long-term.”

Domino’s showed it can be done

Forsyth said the coffee chain could follow the example of Domino’s Pizza, which has carved out a niche in Italy despite initial skepticism that an American chain could sell pizza to Italians.

Starbucks has announced plans to open more stores in Milan with licensing partner Percassi starting later this year.

Schultz, who is now chairman emeritus of Starbucks, credits a 1983 trip to Milan for shaping his vision for the chain.

“I walked the streets of Milan and I was captivated, seduced, intoxicated by Italian coffee bars,” Schultz said in a statement. “I rushed back to America with a great idea to replicate in United States, and everyone thought I was crazy.”</s>MILAN— Starbucks Corp. SBUX 0.49% opens a coffee shop on average every four hours somewhere in the world. But this store is different. It is in Italy.

On Friday, the Seattle-based chain will start selling its American take on coffee in the home of espresso. After amassing more than 25,000 coffee shops in 78 countries, Starbucks is coming to Milan with a “reserve roastery” in a converted post office on a central square near the city’s famous Gothic cathedral.

It will be only Starbucks’s third roastery after Seattle and Shanghai. In a sign of the expected difficulty in winning over tradition-obsessed Italians, there will be no Frappuccinos or other blended drinks on offer. It will be as much about theater as coffee. Customers can speak to a Starbucks employee manning a large custom-built roaster in the middle of the cafe, sip alcoholic drinks in the evening in a nod to Milan’s traditional aperitivo, and eat pizza and pastries made in a wood-fired brick oven by noted Milanese baker Princi.

“It’s a reflection of the fact that we come here with great respect for the Italian coffee experience,” Starbucks Chief Executive Kevin Johnson said in an interview.

It is that experience that inspired Howard Schultz, who after a visit to Milan 35 years ago began the transformation that would turn Starbucks into the behemoth it is today.

Starbucks has been focusing on expanding abroad, especially in China, to offset stagnant sales in the U.S., where Starbucks is closing stores.

The Milan Starbucks is opening during a moment of ferment for the coffee industry. Coca-Cola Co. last week announced it would buy British coffee-shop chain Costa for $5.1 billion while Nestlé SA this year bought the rights to sell Starbucks products in retail stores.

Milanese coffee drinkers will have to wait a little to get their first local Caramel Cocoa Cluster Frappuccino. Starbucks plans to open its first normal coffee shops in the city by the end of year. Mr. Johnson said the sites have been identified and work on them has begun. He declined to say how much had been invested in the first Milan roastery or how many of the traditional Starbucks cafes would be opened.

The multilevel Milan roastery features a bar with a 30-foot countertop cut from a single piece of Tuscan marble. Other draws include outdoor seating in one of Milan’s most central squares, a glass ceiling and an entire wall depicting the company’s history engraved in brass.

Later this year, Starbucks will inaugurate a similar roastery in New York near Chelsea Market with openings in Tokyo and Chicago planned for 2019.

For Italians who like to knock back their €1 ($1.16) shot of espresso at speed—while standing at a crowded bar, naturalmente—the American way of lingering in a Starbucks could be a tough sell.

Even tougher might be getting Italians, and Milan’s tourists, to swallow the €1.80 price of an espresso and the €5 cappuccino, more than three times the going price in hundreds of other bars in Milan. And toughest of all could be getting the Italians to accept that a cappuccino can be “short,” “tall” or “grande.”

“It’s going to be difficult to draw us away from our usual bar, but we’ll definitely go see what Starbucks is offering,” said Antonella Mazzei as she and two colleagues emerged from a cafe two blocks away from the new Starbucks. “Anything new is welcome and good for Milan.”

Ms. Mazzei said she can imagine going to Starbucks occasionally for something special, but she can’t see herself paying €1.80 for a Starbucks espresso. Her regular bar, across from her office, sells 10 prepaid espressi for €9.

For one euro more, the new Starbucks cafe will offer a global debut, the €10 “Pantheon Blend Cream Affogato.” It’s a riff on a popular Italian dessert, made by pouring espresso over a scoop of ice cream. The Starbucks version includes ice cream made to order using liquid nitrogen. Alternatively, there will be the €10 “whiskey barrel-aged cold brew,” sweetened with vanilla syrup aged in casks.

Local bar workers are relatively sanguine about the arrival of Starbucks.

“We aren’t worried about losing business because Starbucks is offering a completely different concept,” said Marilena Muzzolini, who manages a cafe near the Starbucks. “I like Starbucks and I’ve been in Paris and London, but I don’t go there for an Italian espresso and I don’t think very many other Italians will either. You go to Starbucks for different things.”</s>MILAN—Starbucks is opening its first store in Italy on Friday, betting that premium brews and novelties like a heated marble-topped coffee bar will win customers in a country fond of its daily espresso rituals. Decades ago, Milan’s coffee bars inspired the chain’s vision. Now Starbucks is hoping clients will visit its new store, the Reserve Roastery, to watch beans being roasted, sip coffee or enjoy cocktails at a mezzanine-level bar in a cavernous former post office near the city’s Duomo, or cathedral.

Starbucks chief design officer Liz Muller told The Associated Press this week that the company is “not coming to Italy to teach people about coffee. This is where coffee was born.” Starbucks Canada to close stores for sensitivity training following the arrest of two Black men at a U.S. location

Starbucks launches its Pumpkin Spice Latte on a sweltering August day — so I took one to the beach Instead, Muller said, Starbucks “wanted to come and bring a premium experience that is different to what people in Italy are used to.” She described that formula as including “many different brewing techniques and a space where we want you to stay longer and relax and enjoy.” In Italy, an espresso at a coffee bar is usually a quick morning or after-lunch ritual performed standing up. In many neighbourhoods, cafes are practically on every corner, and Italians are on a first-name basis with their trusted barista.

Italy is Starbucks’ 78th global market, and the Milan opening comes 20 years after Starbucks opened its first store in Europe, in London. The company has described the Milan store as “the crown jewel of Starbucks global retail footprint.” It says it plans more cafes for Milan later this year. At a nearby coffee shop, the locals were skeptical of the multinational’s arrival.

“I’ve tasted Starbucks coffee and I’ll absolutely stick to Italian coffee,” said Giulia Brighenti as she scraped the foamy remains of her espresso. “I think the classic Italian coffee is best,” agreed Gianluigi Manusardi. “I also prefer it when I go abroad.” Milan is the first place where Starbucks has opened a store in its Roastery format in untested territory. It opened a Roastery in Seattle, the U.S. city that is home to its corporate headquarters, in 2014, and a second one in Shanghai last year. Italians are used to marble counters for coffee bars, but Starbucks boasts that it outfitted its counter tops in the Milan store with heating so they won’t feel stone cold on chill days. The centrepiece of the Milan store is a 6.5-meter (22-foot) high bronze cask, part of the roasting process. The company also hopes the store’s cocktail bar will be an attraction: Many who work in Milan, Italy’s fashion and financial capital, cherish the tradition of meeting friends or colleagues for an “aperitivo,” or pre-dinner cocktail, often in cafes.
Starbucks opens its first shop in Italy, in the city of Milan. The 25,000 square-foot Reserve Roastery creates 300 jobs.