Starbucks Japan – Worldwide Brand but Japanese Style | Guidable - Your Guide to a Sustainable, Wellbeing-centred Life in Japan

Starbucks Japan – Worldwide Brand but Japanese Style

By Linh Truong Aug 20, 2018

This post is also available in: Vietnamese

Starbucks – a worldwide coffee brand, was first founded in Seattle, USA in 1971. When it came to 2017, this brand has been expanded up to different 75 countries with more than 26,000 stores. Starbucks has an easy-to-recognize logo. Even though in 2011, the company decided to put away the words “coffee”, “tea”, and also the brand name “Starbucks” on the logo, it is not difficult for people to recognize the brand when looking through the logo only, which is a thing that not all brands can do.

1. What makes Starbucks become popular and famous?

Customers are usually impressed by the quality of experience that every single store brings back no matter where that store is. Encountering rude staff is a very rare experience when you go into this brand’s store. Most customers can enjoy the exhilarating and relaxing experience in the store where you can not only gather together with your friends or family but also you can work or study, depending on your preferences.

In addition, Starbucks is one of a few brands that allows their customers to use their own cups and offers them a discount when they buy drinks at the store. By this method, Starbucks can save up a huge amount of paper as well as plastic cups, which can protect the forest and the environment, in general.

Starbucks also develops the popularity and convenience of its brand by investing in the mobile marketing and introducing the Starbucks app on your mobile phone. Customers can use this app to pay for the drinks, tip the staffs (tipping is a part of the culture in some countries), earn and redeem rewards and use discount code or coupons, which attracts more customers to stick to this brand.

2. Starbucks in Japan

Japan was a country in which Starbucks has opened its very first international store. This store was opened in Ginza, Tokyo (August,1996) and since then, due to the rapid expansion throughout the country, the number of stores has reached more than 1,300.

One of the most effective strategies that helps Starbucks to become such a well-known brand nowadays, is to localize the store elements but still ensure the experience which customers in that country can have to meet the Starbucks’s standard quality.  Thanks to this strategy as well as the unique culture, Starbucks Japan has many special features that make Starbucks in this country become the most outstanding Starbucks in the world.

  • Starbucks Japan Menu

Japan is a country famous for Matcha (green tea). Therefore, it is impossible for a store in this country to not have Matcha flavoured drink in its menu. In addition, Starbucks Japan also run a campaign for special drinks for every different season. For example, in this summer, customers can enjoy the summer in Japan with a new drink which is Peach Pink Fruit Frappuccino – the combination of peach, pink grapefruit and strawberry.

  • Starbucks Japan Tumbler and Mug

Besides seasonal drinks and beverages, Starbucks Japan also provide their customers with a variety of choices of limited edition Tumbler and Mugs. Depending on each region, they will have different patterns printed on these Tumblers and Mugs. All these patterns represent a particular region’s culture or represent the whole country like Sakura (cherry blossom) or Mount Fuji. Customers will have a chance to buy these Tumblers and Mugs as souvenirs when they go to any Starbucks stores in Japan.

  • Starbucks Japan Store

Even though Japan is known as a modern country with several tall buildings, the traditional style of the building still exists as a unique characteristic of Japanese culture. However, this does not mean that Starbucks Japan Stores are only designed follow the traditional style. When customers come to Japan, they can enjoy both traditional and modern style of design, based on their superiors.

3. Traditional-designed Starbucks Store in Japan

Instead of having experience in a Starbucks store designed in a modern style, it is a highlight of your travel in Japan when you visit these following traditional-styled Starbucks stores:

  • Starbucks in Ueno Park, Tokyo

Among the beautiful and peaceful atmosphere in Ueno Park, this Starbucks store seems to be the highlight that helps to distinguish this park from many other ones in Tokyo. With a low-rise structure, you can enjoy a cup of coffee or tea in the sunlight, fresh air and surrounding seasonal nature. Because Ueno Park is one of the largest as well as the most famous parks in Tokyo, especially in Sakura (cherry blossom) season, there are a lot of people who come to visit. On this occasion, please be ready to queue in lines and wait for your turn to get into the store!

Opening hours: 8:00 – 21:00

Access: Ueno Station

  • Starbucks in Kawagoe, Saitama

Having been open since March, 2018, this Starbucks store is famous for its beautiful and unique decoration as well as style. Since this store is located in Kawagoe City – Saitama’s “Little Edo”, the design of this store followed after Edo period building structure. When you walk into the store, the first thing that impresses you may be the Japanese space with decoration made from timber, sliding panels and framed works of art. If you walk through the store, you will see a beautiful garden behind the store, where you can enjoy your drinks with benches and cushions. These cushions are specifically made from Kawagoe Tozan – a type of fabric material used in producing Kimono.

Opening hours: 08:00 – 20:00

Access: Kawagoe Station

  • Starbucks in Kamakura Inaricho, Kanagawa

Kamakura is a tourist attraction with beautiful beaches, temples and also traditional food. Therefore, Starbucks in this place also has unique features that are able to represent this region. When you go to this store, you can enjoy sitting on tatami flooring and straw mats with a view of the outdoor pool.

Opening hours: 07:00 – 22:00

Access: Kamakura Station

With this information, I hope that you will have a wonderful experience when going to Starbucks in Japan!

Linh

Vietnam