Why It Took Starbucks 47 Years To Opon A Store In Italy in Milan ‘Starbucks unvellad its frst ever store in taly last week, a Starbucks Reserys: FY fal ret” thetis just as much a commercial ember ae iti a toric statement ofthe cOmPan’ s Pro to the city that first inspired its brand, nt Located ina trendy square near some of Milan's top tourist attractions, he 25,000-sqere & building is cutfited in Tuscan marble and gleaming copper, featuring e*2™ eet pound in-house coffee roaster, augmented reality (AR)-configured wal nitrogen effogato station. jing in over $22 Today, Starbucks has over 28,000 locations in 78. countries weit on sacs bition in revenue in 2017. According to Kantar Milward Brown, i's te Tce — most valuable brand, with ts green-anc-aite logo worth some $44.5 ae pop culture, from vical Buzzfeed-colebrated drinks to national cultural meltdowns about holiday designs However ita A7 yor nator, tra Ie oe aur fom which Starbuck Hee Tom conspicuously absent. For goad reason-talions take their coffee very diferently, Gu on Ube to American corporations trying to change their culture. Now, at the height ofits power profitability, it wes time for Starbucks to rothink Italy. All Roads Load Back To Rome id mae with new at Starbucks Milan, 2 perlegt metaohor for the mesting of American and halien coffee cultures. The marble flor of the store was consiructed in a trecitionel Palladian style. vanile the ceiling was built using the latest technology. The building's facade is an imposing structure that used to be the city’s historic post office If there is any culture in the world that takes its coffee seriously, it's the Hallans, For this reason, Starbucks is taking special pains to align itsetf with the local economy. From offering locally roasted small-let Arabica cotfee to cafe fares by Princi, an oa bakery that Starbucks has forged an ‘extended partnership with for all ofits Reserve Roasteries, Starbucks is defetring~as corporately as possible-to the hostess. A partnership with Percassi, an ltalian brand management and real estate ‘group, further helped the company understand its new market “I think this idea of presenting itself in this traditional way with the roasterles is a cunning marketing move, because they are showing we are different, but we are the same,” said Eva Del Soldato, an Assistant Professor of Romance Languages at the University of Pennsylvania who teaches seminar on Italian culture and food. “(it says), We are not here to teach Italians how to prepare coffee’. This kind of humbleness can be appreciated,” Dol Soldato believes Starbucks made the fight decision by picking Milan as its entry point, a city of modem fashion and finanee. In contrast, Naples and Rome are the true coffee snob capitals of Italy, where the espresso culture even more insular. But how will Starbucks successfully compete in a market like Ital ly, Where even the most oncescript coffee bar in a small village is still likely to Serve coffee good enough to bring tears to the eyes of the stuffiest Bi i 's not j a Stuffiest Brooklyn bean connoisseur? The answer-t’s not just about product. It's about the For Milanese customers, Starbucks will become the brand th round ; at thi ome @ sense of dynamic busyness and an on-the-go attiude ‘tate ‘th ion pe ae into iS send an urgent email, ora place where you can go if you don't feel Wis ta 5 your local bar that day. Starbucks doesr't seit si 2 Byte hee 0 lust coffee: it selis a status eS ing extra. In way, the experience justifies the brand, which justifies the MoneeAll this g said than done. ‘company courted Ic reaction? An angry ¢ Other Italians are d from Bologna, said he fet “1 dont really get why a k can have. | think it's mot going to SSpagnol said he has only’ found it wasn't the place for b local bars three times a week to e ‘As for the quality of S