Thanks to its collaboration with the massive food and beverage company SPC Group, the Italian coffee chain today runs more than 500 locations throughout the nation of east Asia.
Mario Pascucci, the CEO of Caffè Pascucci, has announced plans to open 100 new locations in South Korea year in an effort to meet the growing demand among younger customers for ‘espresso bar coffee culture’.
In 2002, the Italian coffee chain made a joint venture with SPC Group, the owner of Paris Baguette, to expand into South Korea. Currently, it has 509 stores around the nation of East Asia as opposed to just 28 in its home market.
In an interview with the economic journal MB, Pascucci stated that the more varied client base and beverage offerings in South Korea contributed to the chain’s success there.
It’s common practice in Italy to grab coffee at an espresso bar and head out to work. In Korean stores, you may get a wide selection of drinks and meal items. As more customers, including young people, visit, the American coffee habit of staying in a cafè for extended periods of time has grown, and the products are varied, he said.
With a “focus on Italian espresso,” Caffè Pascucci added espresso bars to its network of South Korean locations in September 2021.
A master franchise deal was signed in March 2024 between Pascucci and Hur Young-in, Chairman of SPC Group, to allow Caffè Pascucci to introduce Paris Baguette in Italy. After France and the UK, Italy would be Paris Baguette’s third European market if success is attained.
