Alshaya Egypt L.L.C opens the first Starbucks coffeehouse in Cairo

Starbucks Egyptian partners (baristas) celebrated the much anticipated opening with friends and family at a pre-opening event yesterday.

Located in Cairo's City Centre, Makram Ebeid Madinet Nasr, the store will complement Egypt's rich, historical coffee tradition and deliver a unique coffee experience by offering some of the world's finest Arabica coffees, roasted to perfection.

Mohamed Alshaya, CEO, Alshaya Egypt L.L.C said; "We are proud to bring Starbucks Coffee to the African continent, which is of great symbolic importance to coffee lovers as the birthplace of coffee. For many years we have seen Egypt as a fast-moving market going from strength to strength. By introducing Starbucks Coffee to Egypt, we will contribute to, and be part of this growth."

"Alshaya and Starbucks have forged a strong partnership over the past seven years while delivering the Starbucks Experience to customers in the Middle East through uncompromising quality, service and by building personal relationships with each of our customers. Today's opening demonstrates the continuation of this successful partnership" added Alshaya.

Through the dedication of passionate partners, Starbucks has transformed the way people in 37 countries enjoy their coffee in a very personal way. The 72-strong Egyptian Starbucks Coffee team recently graduated from months of intense coffee training to become the first Starbucks baristas (expert coffee makers), store managers and area managers in Egypt.

Coffee plays an important role in the life of Egyptians and Starbucks and Alshaya are honored to contribute to Egypt's rich coffee tradition with a unique coffee experience that allows customers to enjoy handcrafted espresso beverages created by knowledgeable Starbucks baristas.

In Egypt, 11 certified Starbucks Coffee Masters will also be available to share their passion and knowledge for all things coffee - coffee buying, tasting, and home brewing. In addition to employing more than 70 Egyptian partners, Starbucks will also work with local suppliers to offer fresh bakery and milk products to our customers.

On behalf of Starbucks, Martin Coles, President, Starbucks Coffee International commented; "Egypt is a country with an already rich coffee heritage and a deep appreciation for great coffee. Starbucks is proud to open its first store in Egypt and we look forward to building a strong relationship with the Egyptian people by offering them the highest quality coffee."

"As part of our long-standing commitment to farmers in coffee growing countries, Starbucks purchases the highest quality green coffee in the world and has established coffee purchasing guidelines with social, economic, and environmental criteria to contribute to the sustainability of farmers and help conserve the environment."

"For Alshaya and Starbucks, our people are at the core of our business success. Caring, dedicated partners (baristas) deliver the Starbucks Experience worldwide every day and Egypt will be no different. Alshaya is delighted to have a team of committed passionate partners in Egypt who have been trained in other markets across the region for more than four months to ensure they are ready to provide our unique Starbucks Experience to Egyptian customers. We are incredibly lucky to have 12 Egyptian partners who have worked for us in Kuwait who are now proud to be coming home to Egypt to share the Starbucks Experience with their friends and family." added Coles.

Starbucks has a global commitment to supporting education and literacy and together with Alshaya, it plans to make a long-term commitment to education in Egypt by partnering with a local non-governmental organization, 4OurKidz, to provide relevant and appropriate educational opportunities and life skills support to disadvantaged youths. Starbucks baristas in Egypt will volunteer their time to support a local school "Giza Al Kawmeya" through a varied programme of activities that will help create safe, fun environments in which children can learn.

"In every community in which Alshaya and Starbucks Coffee operate, we want to be known as much for contributing positively to the local community as we are for the quality of our coffee," said Alshaya. "We do that by becoming a core part of the local community, through initiatives that will directly contribute to its long term sustainability and the same is planned for Egypt."

"We have embarked on a partnership with 4OurKidz. The first of our joint initiatives is to support the creation of knowledge corners in local schools, equipped with books, educational equipment and computer facilities for children in underprivileged areas," added Alshaya.

With the addition of the first store in Egypt, Alshaya will operate over 200 Starbucks Coffee locations across the Middle East and Turkey, employing over 2,500 staff members in 11 different countries.