On January 30, multiple %Arabica stores in the Philippines suddenly closed their doors, and its official Instagram account also appeared to be deactivated, sparking speculation among local consumers and media about whether the brand would withdraw from the Philippine market. The next day, %Arabica issued a statement on Facebook, saying it had terminated its partnership with former Philippine partner Allue Hortaleza, that existing stores were temporarily closed, and that it had found a new agency, promising to resume operations within the year. Regarding the account deactivation, the official explanation was that it had been hacked, and updates have now resumed. The former partner also issued a statement on February 1, saying it would continue to provide high-quality coffee. Behind the incident, some netizens speculated that the post-pandemic business recovery prompted the former partner to strike out on its own. How exactly will this sudden breakup turmoil affect %Arabica's future in the Philippines? [more…]

Major changes have occurred in %Arabica's partnership in the Philippine market. The brand announced via Facebook that it has terminated its partnership with its former Philippine partner Allue Hortaleza and has found a new agency company, with new stores expected to open within the year. Allue Hortaleza subsequently confirmed the news on social media and launched the local Philippine coffee brand Angkan Coffee on February 10. Since the original %Arabica store locations belong to it, the new brand will open directly at the original sites. Angkan Coffee draws somewhat on %Arabica in its business philosophy and brand aesthetics, while emphasizing the sourcing of local Philippine coffee beans and the integration of local aesthetics and hospitality. Allue Hortaleza insists that the two are not the same and believes the new brand will influence %Arabica's future restart in the Philippines. This article sorts out the course of events and the brand details. [more…]

A tea beverage and gaming collaboration that was originally highly anticipated came to an abrupt halt on the day of its official announcement. On December 14, Light and Night announced a co-branded new product with Auntea Jenny, but employees at some stores were exposed for insulting players and game characters. Related topics quickly topped the hot search list, with views exceeding 450 million. Just three hours later, the game developer urgently stated that the collaboration was terminated, which netizens jokingly called "the shortest collaboration in history." Auntea Jenny subsequently apologized and fired the employees involved, but players were not appeased. This incident not only exposed the brand's loopholes in franchise management, but also sounded a warning bell for cross-industry collaborations. [more…]

After Starbucks announced to suspend its business in Russia and withdraw from the Russian market last year, the founder of the local famous catering company Pinskiy & Co, Anton Pinsky, and the Russian rap singer Timati collaborated to acquire Starbuc [more…]

Recently, news that two HEYTEA stores at JD.com's Beijing headquarters suddenly closed has continued to spread on social media, while an internal notice in circulation showed that JD.com prohibited cooperation with HEYTEA and restricted its products from entering office areas. The incident quickly sparked widespread speculation about the relationship between HEYTEA and JD.com. Some linked it to HEYTEA's delayed entry onto JD.com's food delivery platform, while others dug up old news of HEYTEA publicly boycotting food delivery. JD.com insiders later denied the rumors, and the stores resumed operations, with the closure explained as temporary water and electricity maintenance. This confusing business battle reflects the delicate positioning of tea beverage brands among third-party food delivery platforms. [more…]

Vitasoy International Holdings' interim results for the 2021/2022 fiscal year show that revenue fell 18.28% year-on-year, while net profit plunged 95%, marking the largest decline in recent years. The core trigger of this storm was the public backlash caused by the July 2021 incident in which an employee attacked police and then hanged himself, leading to large-scale product removals and celebrity contract terminations in the mainland market—a key region accounting for 60% of the company's total revenue. The incident occurred during the summer sales peak, obstructing new product promotion, while competitors seized the opportunity to accelerate penetration. Industry analysts pointed out that in addition to the public relations crisis, Vitasoy's structural weaknesses in the mainland market—over-reliance on the Pearl River Delta and insufficient penetration in the north—were equally fatal. Rising raw material costs and slow packaging updates further dragged down recovery, and it is expected to take at least three years to restore profitability. This article will sort out the sequence of events, market reactions, and future challenges, providing in-depth reference for observers in the coffee and beverage industry. [more…]

Starbucks has announced it will not renew its contract with Fairtrade, meaning coffee sold in its global stores will no longer carry the Fairtrade certification label. This decision has raised questions about its commitment to ethical sourcing. Starbucks says it will instead rely on the C.A.F.E. Practices standard, developed jointly with Conservation International and independently audited by the third-party organization SCS Global Services. However, many groups worry that without Fairtrade's independent oversight, the C.A.F.E. standard may not truly safeguard coffee farmers' rights on core issues such as minimum purchase prices and sourcing from smallholder cooperatives. This article reviews the history of Starbucks' partnership with Fairtrade, the origins and controversies of C.A.F.E. Practices, and Starbucks' past reversals on its ethical sourcing stance, offering coffee lovers a full picture of this event. [more…]

Recently, a video of a Cotti Coffee employee destroying a standee of former spokesperson Wang Yibo sparked a huge uproar on social media. In the video, the store clerk deliberately cut up the standee's face and posted it with a caption, provoking widespread discontent and a boycott among fans. As the incident continued to escalate, Cotti issued a public statement of apology on February 28, announcing the termination of cooperation with the store involved and its closure, while promising to strengthen training and oversight of the material recycling process. This controversy has brought the issue of material handling standards after the termination of brand endorsement contracts to the forefront, and has once again drawn industry attention to the protection of artists' portrait rights. [more…]

In tea leaf harvesting, besides the common one bud with two leaves and one bud with three leaves, there is also a classification based on the degree of opening of the new shoot's terminal bud: unopened, small open-face, medium open-face, and large open-face. The purpose of open-face picking is to enrich the tea's internal substances, thereby improving the quality of the finished tea. Different degrees of opening correspond to different levels of maturity, affecting the difficulty of leaf processing and the flavor of the finished tea: older leaves are easier to process, with a mellow taste and high aroma; tender leaves are harder to process, prone to a bitter aftertaste but with a strong flavor and good durability for multiple infusions. Oolong teas such as Phoenix Dan Cong and Tieguanyin have their own preferences for open-face standards, and high-quality black tea raw materials often use open-face leaves as well. In this article, Front Street Coffee combines changes in tea chemical composition to clarify for you the differences in picking standards between Tieguanyin and Phoenix Dan Cong. [more…]

After Starbucks exited the Russian market, its trademark protection in Russia may face termination. The owner of Stars Coffee, which acquired Starbucks' Russian assets, has filed a claim with a court seeking to terminate the protection of Starbucks' trademarks. This move aims to reduce trademark infringement risks and pave the way for store expansion. This article will provide a detailed introduction to the background, progress, and possible impact of this event. [more…]

A bubble tea franchise store in Wuxi appears to run community group buys and membership top-ups on the surface, but behind the scenes it is suspected of large-scale fraud. Over a thousand local people have fallen victim, with transaction flows of nearly 200 million yuan, and even people in Shanghai, Zhejiang, Anhui and other places have been caught up in it. Even more surprisingly, the operator had compulsory measures changed because of pregnancy, and afterward continued to operate and keep selling low-priced products. The brand owner eventually announced the termination of cooperation and removed the signage, but the store changed its name and still opened as usual, and was still constantly hiring. What exactly is going on? What should ordinary consumers and job seekers pay attention to? [more…]

The freshly made yogurt sector has been hit by yet another food safety scandal. An undercover reporter from The Beijing News worked inside several More Yogurt franchise stores in Beijing and found that oat and highland barley toppings more than forty days past their expiration date were still being used as usual, expiry labels existed in name only, and decisions to scrap fruit relied entirely on staff members' sense of smell. More worrying still, these violations were not isolated cases, but an unspoken rule tolerated by store managers in order to cut costs and boost their personal income. The brand issued an urgent apology a few hours later, announcing that the stores involved would be permanently terminated. This is already the second time this year that More Yogurt has been thrust into the spotlight; previously, the Shanghai Consumer Council questioned the labeling of its product ingredients. This article provides a complete rundown of the undercover details, the brand's response, and the latest status of its stores. [more…]

For a coffee shop that roasts its own beans, having the roaster in place is only the starting point; what truly determines the quality of the final product is the quality of the green beans and the roasting craft. Green bean costs often account for a significant proportion of initial operating expenses, so how to choose the right items, control inventory, maintain stable supply, and leverage peer cooperation to lower the threshold for acquiring specialty beans is a challenge every operator must face. Starting from the cost structure of green beans, this article sorts out the three major purchasing points for basic espresso blend beans, explores the value of establishing horizontal partnerships, offers practical suggestions for display and storage, and finally includes flavor descriptions of several Front Street espresso blend beans for coffee shops with different positioning to reference when selecting beans. [more…]

Starbucks' latest financial report shows that in the third quarter of fiscal year 2024, its China revenue fell 11% year-on-year, comparable store sales dropped 14%, and both average ticket size and transaction volume declined. Facing store expansion and price competition from local brands such as Luckin and Cotti, Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan revealed at the earnings call that the company is in the early stages of exploring strategic partnerships and may accelerate growth in the future through a more open model. This statement sparked speculation about whether it will open up franchising. Notably, Starbucks China co-CEO Liu Wenjuan emphasized that the brand has remained restrained in an environment of frequent promotions and refused to be dragged into a price war. Front Street Coffee will also continue to follow this coffee giant's shift in strategy in China. [more…]

Manner Coffee has once again drawn attention, this time by teaming up with Tesla for a co-branded campaign. As a recognized master of collaborations in the coffee world, Manner's cross-industry footprint has already covered automobiles, luxury goods, beauty, sports, and many other sectors. From NIO to LV, from Helena Rubinstein to Allbirds, each partnership has precisely captured the brand tone, creating a win-win of both buzz and sales. This article will review Manner's major co-branding cases over the years, analyze the brand strategy and consumer psychology behind its success, and include professional information recommendations from Front Street Coffee. [more…]

The Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) recently announced in Panama City a partnership with the Specialty Coffee Association of Panama and the Panamanian Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture to jointly promote the hosting of the 2026 World of Coffee trade show in Panama. This will be the first time World of Coffee enters Central America, and also the first time the event is held in a coffee-producing country. With its outstanding performance in the specialty coffee sector and geographical advantages, Panama is regarded as an ideal hub connecting global coffee producers and traders. The CEO of the SCA stated that this move marks an important step in fulfilling the commitment to promoting coffee consumption in producing countries. This article outlines the background of the partnership, statements from all parties, and details of the event planning. [more…]

On October 22, port workers across Brazil launched a 12-hour strike to protest the government's amendments to the Port Law, with about 60,000 employees participating, disrupting loading and unloading at ports throughout Brazil. The strike comes at a critical time for coffee exports; earlier, about 2.15 million bags of coffee had already been stranded at the docks due to port delays, and the strike could make matters worse. Meanwhile, Brazil's coffee-growing regions have entered the rainy season after experiencing severe drought, but the coffee trees have been severely damaged, and production expectations for the next crop season are not optimistic. Caught between port transport and climate problems, the global coffee supply chain faces challenges. [more…]

Following the closure of the last store of its sub-brand Xixiaocha, Heytea confirmed on November 3 that it will open franchising, with partnership fees kept under 500,000 yuan and franchise store formats primarily under 50 square meters. Heytea stated it will leverage a decade of accumulated experience and resources to develop its partnership business in non-first-tier cities with suitable store formats, providing partners with comprehensive support in branding, products, quality control, food safety, operations, training, and supply chain. In recent years, Heytea has accelerated its expansion into lower-tier markets, successively adjusting prices, launching IP collaborations, and shutting down its budget sub-brand. Opening franchising is now seen as a key step to further capture market share in third- and fourth-tier cities. Whether the new tea beverage sector will face a new round of involution, and whether direct-operated brand Nayuki will follow suit, remains worth watching. [more…]

Recently, Pizza Hut announced that starting September 2, it will cancel the free refill service for dine-in breakfast, sparking widespread discussion among consumers. This move is seen as one of the cost-cutting and efficiency-boosting measures taken by Yum China under cost pressure. Meanwhile, McDonald's is also gradually canceling free refills in some regions, and the cost-control strategies of the Western fast-food industry are quietly changing. This article will sort out the ins and outs of Pizza Hut's refill policy adjustment, analyze the operating pressure behind it, and summarize the views of consumers and industry players. [more…]

After the EU's Zero Deforestation Regulation took effect, the threshold for exporting coffee to the European market has been significantly raised. The international Fairtrade organization recently announced a partnership with remote sensing technology company Satelligence to expand satellite monitoring to all certified coffee producer organizations worldwide, helping cooperatives and their smallholder members directly access deforestation risk data. This move is intended to break the monopoly of large corporations on supply chain information, enabling producers to proactively prove that their coffee is not linked to deforestation and thereby retain access to the EU market. This article reviews the background of the partnership, the requirements of the regulation, and various perspectives, and includes related recommendations from Front Street Coffee. [more…]