Taiwanese coffee chain Cama Cafe is planning to expand into Southeast Asia next year, its chairman said.
The chain, which has opened more than 120 stores over 13 years, would open its first overseas branch in Southeast Asia in the first quarter next year, Cama chairman Ho Ping-lin (何炳霖) said, although he did not specify the country.
In recent years, foreign distributors have approached the company, expressing interest in taking the brand overseas, Ho said, adding that it is choosing its partners carefully.
Photo: CNA
“But Cama will move in a prudent manner instead of making a speedy expansion,” Ho said. “We want to make certain our every step is stable when we expand overseas.”
Cama generates about NT$700 million (US$22.94 million) in sales a year, despite an increasingly competitive market, where growing business opportunities are attracting new competitors, including convenience store and supermarket chains, he said, adding that Cama would continue to work for a larger share of the Taiwanese market, even as it explores opportunities abroad.
On Nov. 19, Cama opened its flagship store, Cama Coffee Roasters, in an 82-year-old Japanese-style house on Yangmingshan (陽明山) in Taipei’s Shilin District (士林), Ho said.
The store was in planning for two years with about 100 people working on the project, he said, adding that it worked with the Taipei City Government to bring new life to the aging building.
Cama would continue to look for new locations, Ho said.
The domestic coffee market’s production value ranges between NT$70 billion and NT$80 billion a year, so compared with the US and Japanese markets, there is still room to grow, he added.
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