Counterfeit Coffee?! Blue Mountain Isn't Blue Mountain, Geisha Isn't Geisha...

Starbucks Opens Its 6,000th Mainland China Store

On September 27, Starbucks China announced on Weibo the opening of its 1,000th Shanghai store at Lippo Plaza on Huaihai Road — which is also the 6,000th store in mainland China. With this opening, Shanghai's Starbucks count continues to lead the world, making it the first city globally to surpass 1,000 Starbucks stores.

This landmark store is also the 6,000th mainland China location certified as a green store, carrying Starbucks' thinking and exploration of the future "third space," with comprehensive application of leading sustainable retail and digital operation solutions.

Exclusive "Shanghai Coffee" Launch

At the unveiling, Starbucks collaborated with IP SHANGHAI to launch its first-ever city-themed limited drink, "Shanghai Coffee," released citywide from September 28. The creative inspiration, reportedly, comes from Shanghai's East-meets-West culture, blended into a flavor that belongs exclusively to the city.

The first sip reveals a thick layer of the original-generation "viral" malted milk powder that once swept through Shanghai, melting slowly in the mouth. The second brings scotch whipped cream, blending butter aroma and burnt caramel as it slides across the tongue. The third reveals finely extracted espresso concentrate — the flavor and soul of this cup of Shanghai coffee.

Store Design and Features

The store's design concept is "returning to the original heart, facing the future" — light and bright, giving customers a refreshed yet familiar, warm spatial experience. The most eye-catching artwork inside uses recycled green aprons as a canvas, displaying Starbucks' iconic mermaid in a graceful double-tail pose.

Up close, rich stories unfold detail by detail, tracing memorable moments of the Starbucks journey. The store also features a giant "cup wall" arranged by designers like a mini city-cup museum, each cup filled with memories and seemingly carrying the footprints of the company's travels.

Market Expansion and Competition

Over the past decade, Starbucks' mainland China store count has grown nearly tenfold, making China its second-largest market after the United States. According to the 2022 Shanghai Coffee Culture Week report, Shanghai now has nearly 8,000 coffee shops — first among global cities — and Starbucks accounts for 1,000 of them.

Market monitoring data shows roughly 20 overseas coffee brands — Canada's Tim Hortons, Italy's LAVAZZA, America's Peet's Coffee and Blue Bottle — have also competed to land in Shanghai first. Starbucks China's first store was in Shanghai, and now the company has returned, full circle, to where it began.

Ambitious 2025 China Strategy

At a recent global investor exchange meeting, Starbucks proposed its "2025 China Strategic Vision": over the next three years it will add 3,000 new stores at a rate of one every 9 hours, covering 300 Chinese cities.

By 2025, Starbucks China's total stores will reach 9,000, with 35,000 new employees bringing headcount above 95,000, alongside goals of doubling net revenue and quadrupling operating profit. It's a target that startles many — 3,000 stores in 3 years, best described as "aggressive."

Note that competition is ferocious. The coffee market has effectively split into three tiers: the first tier of national chains — Starbucks, Luckin, Manner — deployed across the country as the "national team"; the second tier of regional chains forming the "local teams"; and a scattered field of independent "individual players" competing street by street.

Market Challenges and Pricing Strategy

Luckin, also first-tier, has long since passed 7,000 stores, overtaking Starbucks. On Starbucks' menu there are currently 84 drinks on sale — including coffee blended with ice cream — of which only 9 are priced under 30 yuan, while 75 exceed 30 yuan, or 89%.

Competitors are far more affordable. Luckin centers on the 20 yuan range, Manner also averages around 20 yuan a cup, and the second and third tiers are similar — drinks launched by tea brands mostly stay under 20 yuan.

As the market expands into lower-tier cities, the tea industry — which like coffee once centered on premium brands such as Nayuki and Heytea — also aimed below 20 yuan in the first half of this year, cutting prices and pledging not to launch any new drinks with three-digit price tags.

Future Outlook and Customer Commitment

Starbucks' current footprint in first- and second-tier cities is already dense, with high market saturation. Adding 3,000 more stores means pushing deeper into lower-tier markets — but whether those markets' spending power can support Starbucks' prices remains an open question.

Starbucks China says it hopes to satisfy consumers' coffee needs across life scenarios over the next three years. "By 2025, the current 2,500 'Starbucks Coffee Service' points covering office buildings, hotels, and other venues will double to 5,000."

"Throughout our journey, Starbucks has cherished the close connections established with every customer, and will continue to innovate and upgrade products and experiences to meet and exceed customer expectations, winning more customer support every day," said Cai Delin, CEO of Starbucks China.

Image source: Internet

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

One more thing worth knowing as chains multiply: a "Blue Mountain" on a menu isn't always Blue Mountain. Strictly speaking, only coffee grown in Jamaica's Blue Mountains and certified by the Jamaican authorities may be called Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee — and there's a real scarcity story behind it: the region's annual output is under 2,500 tons, and Japan historically bought over 70% of it. FrontStreet Coffee recommends learning to spot the genuine article:

• FrontStreet Jamaica Blue Mountain No.1 (Clifton Estate) — the highest grade, from Clifton Estate, which has grown coffee since around 1750 at an average elevation of about 1,310 meters; medium-dark roasted, with nuts, dark chocolate, cream caramel, and a gentle sweetness in perfect acid-sweet-bitter balance.
• How to verify authenticity — look for export certification and origin documents, and for the traditional wooden barrels (15, 45, or 70 kg) used to ship genuine Blue Mountain beans; authentic green beans are plump, green, with slightly upturned ends. The cup should be clean, dense, and aromatic with zero off-flavors.
• Brewing suggestion — pour-over at a 1:15 ratio with 87–88°C water and a medium-coarse grind (finer than for light roasts, around white-sugar texture) to reveal the classic balance: chocolate sweetness, strong body, moderate acidity, and a lasting fruity finish.