Heytea opened a new store near Columbia University in the United States. The store had originally planned to hold a soft-opening event on January 23, claiming that Columbia students could receive a free cup of milk tea and a limited-edition fridge magnet by showing their student ID. However, many students who showed up that afternoon were told by staff that they needed an invitation from the brand to enjoy the perk. They queued in sub-zero temperatures only to leave empty-handed, triggering widespread dissatisfaction and complaints. Some staff even claimed that the related promotional posts on the platform were false information, while the students who posted them countered that the rules had been changed by the store at the last minute. After the incident quickly escalated, Heytea issued an apology that same evening, admitting shortcomings in the planning and execution of the event, and reiterating that on the official opening day of January 24, Columbia students could still receive a free drink by showing their ID. [more…]

On March 21, Blue Bottle Coffee officially announced that its eighth official store in mainland China would open in Phase II of Columbia Circle in Shanghai, welcoming customers on March 30, with gift-giving activities arranged during the opening period. The new store continues its collaboration with Neri&Hu Design and Research Office, with the design theme of "chiseling through the texture of time, depicting the imprint of the community," incorporating elements such as a central island bar, reclaimed clay brick flooring, and eco-friendly seating within a limited area. Notably, judging from photos taken on the first day of the store visit, this location did not recreate the long-queue spectacles of the past, with popularity somewhat declining compared to before. Meanwhile, regarding the location of the first permanent store outside Shanghai, social media rumors suggest that the MixC World commercial district in Shenzhen may welcome the first South China store later this year, but the company has not yet officially confirmed this. [more…]

Recently, the National Consumers League (NCL) filed a lawsuit against Starbucks in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, accusing its "100% ethically sourced" marketing of deceiving consumers. NCL pointed out that Starbucks emphasizes ethical sourcing commitments in its marketing, yet fails to effectively address labor abuses such as child labor and forced labor in its coffee supply chain. Since 2015, Starbucks has claimed that 99% of its coffee is ethically sourced. Although its C.A.F.E. Practices program includes multiple indicators, investigative journalists in Brazil and elsewhere have still found violations at certified farms. Starbucks responded that it will vigorously defend itself and stressed that it works with farms to ensure compliance with standards. [more…]

Global food giant Nestlé has announced it will acquire Starbucks' Seattle's Best Coffee brand, a move seen as an important step in Nestlé's continued push to expand in the North American coffee market. This is not the first collaboration between the two companies—in 2018, Nestlé paid $7.15 billion for distribution rights to Starbucks' retail business. The acquisition will further enrich Nestlé's coffee brand portfolio in North America and is expected to be completed by the end of 2022. At the same time, Nestlé has completed several acquisitions this year and launched a new coffee sustainability plan. [more…]

Have you ever heard of "Ironman Geisha"? Behind this resounding title lies the legendary story of Panama's Finca Auromar and its founder, Roberto Brenes. From a finance elite to a coffee estate owner, Roberto infused the fighting spirit of triathlon into Geisha cultivation, creating top-tier coffee that has repeatedly won BOP awards. Front Street Coffee takes you into this young yet highly accomplished estate to explore the origin of the name Ironman Geisha, the estate's microclimate, processing techniques, and the cupping flavors of Catalina Natural Geisha. Whether you're a Geisha enthusiast or a coffee professional, you'll feel Finca Auromar's ultimate pursuit of quality. [more…]

Front Street Coffee recently introduced a Camilina Geisha coffee bean from Panama's Aurora Estate, whose flavor falls perfectly between Hacienda La Esmeralda's naturally processed Red Label Geisha and washed Green Label Geisha, showcasing smooth fruit acidity and rich layers. Aurora Estate is located in the valley on the western side of Baru Volcano. The estate owner, Roberto Brenes, once won the 2013 Best of Panama championship with a washed Geisha and named the champion batch "Ironman." This article will share, in detail, the three-stage pour-over parameters and flavor performance of this bean, from the estate's background and the variety's story to Front Street's roaster's medium-light roast recommendations, taking you to experience the charm of a Geisha that drifts as lightly as the aurora. [more…]

The relationship between coffee and gout has always been a topic of concern for coffee lovers. In the past, people worried that caffeine metabolism would raise uric acid levels, but in recent years, multiple studies have pointed to the opposite conclusion. A large-scale study jointly conducted by the National Defense Medical College of Japan and Osaka University, involving more than 150,000 Japanese people, analyzed the association between the number of days per week of coffee consumption and uric acid levels and the incidence of gout. The results showed that for each additional day per week of coffee consumption, the risk of developing gout could be reduced by about 25%. This finding provides new data support for coffee's role in preventing gout and has also prompted further thinking about coffee components and the mechanisms of gout. This article will review the core conclusions of the study, previous research evidence, and expert opinions to help readers scientifically understand the relationship between coffee and gout. [more…]

Panama's Aurora Estate Geisha coffee has repeatedly won championships in BOP competitions thanks to its outstanding quality, with the 2013 Washed Ironman Geisha and the 2016 Natural Camilina Geisha being particularly remarkable. Front Street Coffee provides an in-depth analysis of Aurora Estate's growing environment, processing methods, and flavor characteristics, and shares the complete pour-over parameters and brewing suggestions for this Natural Geisha. The article also introduces the background story of estate owner Robert Brenes, and how Aurora Estate stood out amid Panama's Geisha boom. Whether you are a Geisha enthusiast or a pour-over player, you can gain practical coffee knowledge and brewing inspiration from it. [more…]

In the Volcán region of Panama, there is an estate barely over a decade old that has repeatedly made the BOP list—Finca Auromar. Founded by former Panama Stock Exchange CEO Roberto Brenes, it shot to fame by winning first place in the 2013 BOP washed category with its "Ironman Geisha," and has appeared on the winners' list almost every year since. The estate's name comes from his daughter and granddaughter, and its Geisha lots are often named after family members, such as Camilina and Catalina. This time, Front Street Coffee brings a detailed review of the Catalina natural Geisha and the Soul Plot Catuai, offering a comprehensive look at this top Geisha estate's unique charm—from its history and microclimate to processing methods and cupping flavors. [more…]

Geisha coffee has always been celebrated for its elegant floral aroma and bright fruit acidity, and the naturally processed Geisha from Panama's Aurora Estate is among the very best. Estate owner Roberto Brenes once won the Best of Panama championship with his Iron Man Geisha, and his natural-process Camilina lot claimed the top spot again in 2016. Front Street Coffee's recently launched Aurora Estate natural Geisha is striking for its white floral notes, berry-like acidity, and sweet orange juice character. This article will walk you through the spread of Geisha and the terroir of Aurora Estate, and share Front Street's roaster's pour-over recommendations for this bean—including grind size, water temperature, coffee-to-water ratio, and staged pouring technique—so you can brew a full-flavored cup at home. [more…]

In the public perception, chain coffee stores usually require a certain amount of space for tables, chairs, and storage, so their scale is not too small. However, Cotti recently announced the launch of a convenient store format called "COTTI Express," using a store-in-store model to compress the minimum opening area to one square meter, greatly reducing both investment and the break-even point. In fact, brands such as Manner with Lianjia and Tims with Sinopec Easy Joy had already tried similar partnerships. Although this model enables low-cost rapid expansion, it has also raised concerns among franchisees about internal competition, pressure from convenience stores' own coffee brands, and quality control and food safety. Whether the store-in-store model can ultimately help brands capture a larger market still needs time to be tested. [more…]

Starbucks China plans to implement a new operating model starting in January 2025, with some stores shifting from "going it alone" to "team-based operations," introducing for the first time a "multi-store community" model in which one store manager oversees two stores simultaneously. At the same time, Starbucks will also establish a new "SM-2 Senior Store Manager" position, adjusting its role setup and training system to cope with its increasingly large store network and fierce competition. This change has sparked heated discussion among netizens, with some noting that brands such as McDonald's and KFC have long had similar precedents, while others worry whether service quality will be affected. [more…]

Since early November, news of Hee Tea closing stores in multiple cities has emerged one after another, sparking widespread attention. Some netizens reported that stores they frequented suddenly ceased operations—not for renovation and upgrades, but for permanent closure. According to statistics, stores closed in November include the Ganzhou Market store in Zhangye, Gansu; the Lanzhou Guofang Department Store store; and the Zhejiang University Zijingang Campus store, among other locations. Among them were both established stores that had operated for a decade and new stores that had been open for less than six months. This phenomenon is believed to be related to an internal letter Hee Tea released in September, which stated that the company would no longer pursue short-term store-opening speed and would instead focus on store quality and operational excellence. At the same time, a blogger claiming to be a city partner revealed that Hee Tea's franchise policy is being adjusted, with applications becoming more difficult, store-building costs increasing, and even a trend of "restricting new store openings and encouraging closures." [more…]

Recently, the Heytea store in Dalian Roosevelt Plaza was reported to have ceased operations, and the site was quickly taken over by another brand's hoarding. This store, which opened in May 2020 and once sparked queuing frenzies, was Dalian's first directly operated store, and its sudden withdrawal surprised many consumers. According to GeoHey brand monitoring data, although Heytea opened new stores in the past 90 days, it also closed 161 stores, with the total number in operation dropping from 4,410 to 4,265, equivalent to about 2 stores disappearing every day. The closures were not limited to franchise stores; some directly operated stores that had been in business for years also exited due to factors such as rent and contracts. The impact of this round of adjustment on the brand's future remains to be seen. [more…]

The integration of coffee brands with the convenience store format is accelerating. Recently, NOWWA Coffee announced a strategic partnership with Jianfu, the largest convenience store brand in Fujian, and the two parties will jointly operate stores through a co-management model, with the first batch of 150 partner stores already launched. This move not only helps NOWWA expand rapidly by leveraging the convenience store’s mature supply chain and low-cost operating advantages, but also adds a new category to the convenience store’s diversified operations. Against the backdrop of intensifying competition among brands such as Luckin and Cotti, NOWWA is exploring lower-tier markets through offline channel cooperation and plans to launch 500 co-managed stores in 2024 and 2,000 in 2025, covering the four provinces of Fujian, Jiangxi, Sichuan, and Jiangsu. [more…]

Recently, the chain coffee brand %Arabica has quietly closed stores in several cities including Xiamen and Shenzhen, sparking widespread attention and discussion online. Among them, the Xiamen MixC store, the brand's first store in the city, ceased operations on May 15 after nearly five and a half years in business; in Shenzhen, the Bao'an Airport store and the Xinghe COCO Park store also closed one after another. The company has not explained the reasons for the closures, and netizens speculate they may be related to mall business adjustments, rising costs, and profitability. Notably, branded coffee trucks have appeared in some areas where stores closed, and the brand's first store in Fuzhou also adopted the coffee truck model. Longtime customers have mixed views: some see it as a flexible adjustment in response to the "buy and go" consumer habit, while others lament that the brand's design-forward store characteristics are being weakened. [more…]

The Starbucks store at Wangfujing Department Store in Changsha's Wuyi Square, the brand's first location in Hunan Province, has recently been reported to be permanently closing. Having operated for fourteen years, this store not only witnessed Starbucks' expansion in Changsha but also carried the coffee memories of countless residents. However, with intensifying competition among tea and coffee brands in the Wuyi commercial district, adjustments to commercial leasing policies, and changes in Starbucks' market strategy, this iconic store has ultimately reached its end. This article will review the store's glorious past, analyze the possible reasons for its closure, and present the regret expressed by local residents. [more…]

Tims China has always held a special place in consumers' minds—many people remember it not for its coffee, but for the bagel on its breakfast menu. However, this chain brand, known for its bagels, has recently been plagued by frequent store closure news. The first Tims store in Yinchuan, which was also the brand's 700th store in China, the Xinhua Department Store location, quietly closed after less than a year in operation, prompting regret among local consumers. Looking at the entire commercial district, this store was surrounded by 3 Luckin Coffee, 2 Starbucks, and 1 Cotti Coffee locations, highlighting the intense competitive pressure. More notably, Tims stores in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Dalian, and other cities have also successively announced closures. From the thousand-store target in its financial reports to the 885 stores counted by Narrow Door Dining Eye, Tims' expansion path seems to be facing severe challenges. This article will start with the closure of the first Yinchuan store to analyze Tims' current operating situation and market challenges. [more…]

After listing on Nasdaq, Tims China delivered its first quarterly report card, with total net revenue in the third quarter reaching 306 million yuan, up nearly 70% year on year and a record high for a single quarter. On the store front, by the end of September it had covered 27 cities nationwide, with 486 net stores, and in October it welcomed its 500th store. At the same time, Tims China continued to advance cooperation with partners such as EasyJoy Coffee and Hema, stepping up its push into the ready-to-drink coffee segment. This article sorts through the key financial data, store expansion pace, store format structure and management's outlook for the future, giving you a quick look at the latest moves of this coffee chain brand in the Chinese market. [more…]

Recently, a netizen from Zhejiang posted that Ningbo's last regular Costa store had quietly closed, sparking widespread discussion. Costa, which once had 8 stores in Ningbo, has now withdrawn all its regular stores, leaving only hospital stores and transportation hub stores. Meanwhile, news of Costa store closures has also emerged in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Tianjin, and many other places. Data shows that in the past 90 days, Costa opened 5 new stores but closed 23, with about 300 stores still in operation. This British brand, which once competed head-on with Starbucks, is gradually disappearing from city streets. Longtime customers miss its consistent quality and comfortable third space, and also lament this silent farewell. [more…]