- Financial Chronicle -
Barista Coffee Company, a subsidiary of Italian coffee retailer Lavazza, will launch \'Espressions\', a new lounge cafe chain by September this year. Espressions, an upmarket cafe lounge concept, would cater to the entire Asia Pacific region with India as a major hub.
Barista Coffee Company, a subsidiary of Italian coffee retailer Lavazza, will launch 'Espressions', a new lounge cafe chain by September this year. Espressions, an upmarket cafe lounge concept, would cater to the entire Asia Pacific region with India as a major hub.
The initial Espressions outlets would test the market response. "We plan to introduce Espressions cafes only in prime locations of Delhi and NCR and observe the market response. We plan to take Espressions to Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad by 2011, said Sanjay Coutinho, CEO of Barista Coffee Company, told Financial Chronicle.
“We will open our first Espressions outlet in Delhi's South Extension by September this year," Coutinho said. The average size of an Espressions cafe would be over 2,000 sq ft compared to 800-1,000 sq ft for the regular Barista outlets, he added.
Explaining the difference between Barista cafes and Espressions, both Lavazza brands, Coutinho said Espressions would be an upmarket, fashion-centric café lounge, with elements of the Lavazza calendar on the walls, while Barista is a simple coffee shop. “The investment in an Espressions outlet would be Rs 60 lakh against around Rs 30 lakh for a Barista outlet.
Under a deal signed with Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum, Barista opened five cafes last year, two on highways and three at petrol pumps.