Food
Luckin Coffee has now become the largest coffee chain in China, surpassing Starbucks in terms of number of locations.
The firm has launched 4500 outlets within the Chinese territory, around 200 more than its Seattle-headquartered competitor. The brand soared past Starbucks late last year and has rapidly multiplied its footprint in the market backed by strong investment from supporters such as BlackRock.
The firm focuses primarily on the coffee delivery and pickup business, and so stores are typically smaller in size than Starbucks locations and some are without seating. Starbucks itself has responded to the challenge by entering into a partnership with Alibaba to offer a more robust delivery solution.
Many of Luckin’s new locations are in areas not currently served by Starbucks.
