A restaurateur and a famous Russian rapper are set to relaunch the Russian chain of coffee shops formerly owned by Starbucks on Thursday. This is the latest rebranding of a major Western company after an unprecedented exodus of major corporations, Reuters reports.
The chain will be renamed Stars Coffee, with a new logo that still features an image of a woman with a star above it, according to the facade of the store in central Moscow, seen by Reuters and on rapper and co-owner Timati’s Instagram. head.
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The Moscow cafe’s new logo was covered in plastic on Wednesday night as Timati and restaurateur co-owner Anton Pinsky prepared to open the first cafe under the new brand on Thursday.
Starbucks declined to comment on the similarity between the logo and the name, but referred to an earlier statement that said the company had decided to withdraw and no longer has a brand in the Russian market.
In late May, Seattle-based Starbucks, which helped popularize takeaway coffee in a traditionally tea-loving society, said it was pulling out of Russia after nearly 15 years.
Starbucks had 130 stores in Russia, operated by its licensee Alshaya Group, and employed about 2,000 people.
The relaunch followed a similar move by Yummy and Dot, which took over former McDonald’s restaurants in Russia.
Who are the two partners who took over Starbucks coffee shops?
In July, Pinsky told Forbes Russia that he would become a co-owner of Starbucks coffee shops in Russia, also in partnership with the Sindika holding company.
While this partnership may seem unlikely, Timati, one of Russia’s most famous rappers, has co-founded the Black Star Burger chain in Russia, which sells the Timati Burger.
He is also known for his support for the Kremlin, and in 2015 he released a track saying “President Putin is my best friend”.
Pinsky, who told Russian reporter and political activist Ksenia Sobchak earlier this month that he had never tasted coffee in his life, has several restaurants in his portfolio, including REDBOX, a pan-Asian joint venture with Timati.
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Source: Hot News RU
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