Starbucks pays hundreds of millions for old premises, but spends billions to rent new premises

Starbucks Vietnam employees work at the alcohol bar in the Reserve store in District 1 - Photo: HONG PHUC

Not only did the company reopen its store under the high-end Starbucks Reserve model, it also chose to locate it in one of the busiest areas in Ho Chi Minh City, with an estimated rent of up to billions of VND per month. Here, there will be drinks sold for over 200,000 VND.

In August 2024, Starbucks Vietnam closed the Reserve store on Han Thuyen Street, the first store under the Reserve model in Vietnam after seven years of operation.

The company said the reason was the contract had expired and they could not reach an agreement on the old price. According to brokers, the rental price at that time was over VND500 million/month and is now over VND700 million/month for an area of ​​210m².

Despite once saying that finding a new location for Reserve was "very time-consuming and laborious", just four months after closing the store on Han Thuyen Street, Starbucks revealed that it had found a new location.

Specifically, a two-storey Reserve store with an area of ​​over 250m², was opened at Bitexco, the architectural icon and most dynamic financial center in Ho Chi Minh City.

The new store at Bitexco will open on April 20.

The first floor serves familiar Starbucks signature dishes, while the second floor is dedicated to the Reserve counter and the Mixology Bar, where each dish can cost over VND200,000.

The operating hours of the areas in the store are also divided differently, such as the Reserve counter opens from 7am, while the Mixology Bar starts serving from 3pm.

According to the announced rental price on the market of about 150 USD/m², the total rental cost for the new Starbucks Vietnam store can be up to 1.9 billion VND per month (excluding incentives, special discounts or other agreements).

A representative of Starbucks Vietnam did not confirm the specific rental price, but said that it would not re-lease the old premises in Han Thuyen and revealed plans to open another high-end store in the center of District 1. The brand currently operates 126 stores nationwide.

At the end of 2023, Mr. Ho Mai Ho became CEO of Starbucks Vietnam, replacing Ms. Patricia Marques, who has been with the brand since its early days in the Vietnamese market (2013). By the end of 2024, Ms. Patricia Marques returned to the F&B industry as CEO of the Phuc Long chain under Masan Group.

Mr. Ho Mai Ho is a person who rarely shares with the media. Unlike his predecessor who often appeared and spoke at events, he almost never answered the press directly. All statements are made by the company's media department.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/tra-mat-bang-cu-vai-tram-trieu-starbucks-chi-hang-ti-dong-thue-mat-bang-moi-20250419195021333.htm