April 26, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Starbucks Korea has become the first coffee shop franchise here to hit the 1 trillion won (US$884.35 million) mark in sales, the company said on March 16.

The company said its sales exceeded 1 trillion won last year, a 29.6 percent growth from a year ago. The sales figure is much higher than its rivals such as Twosome Place, Angel-in-us and the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf whose sales remained in the 100-200 billion won range. 

Seattle-based Starbucks entered Korea in 1999, opening the first store near Ewha Womans University in Seoul. As of February, it operates 1,008 outlets across the nation.

The Korean unit is operated by South Korean retail and food giant Shinsegae Group. Last year, the company’s operating profit jumped 81.2 percent to 85.4 billion won.

By Park Yuna (yunapark@heraldcorp.com)