It's L.A. Story meets Europe; a scene reminiscent of Steve Martin's musings on excessive, ridiculous coffee preferences
from his satirical 1991 film. Imagine the French, for example, consuming triple-shot2 soy milk lattes, the Italians downing3
almond mocha espressos, or perhaps the Swiss insisting upon half-caf skimmed macciattos? It seems unlikely to some,
but it may become a real possibility. That's because European nations, including Italy, which introduced the coffeehouse
to the world more than 400 years ago, now face an American challenge to this treasured4, and once unique, institution.
The Seattle-based coffee powerhouse, Starbucks, has announced plans to expand5 its 4,000-strong empire with some 650
branches6 planned for continental Europe.
Starbucks is currently opening new branches worldwide at a rate of three per day. "We're taking a softly, softly7 approach
when it comes to Europe," explained a spokeswoman for Starbucks Europe. "We expect to open shops in the big four
countries, Italy, Germany, France and Spain in the next 24 to 36 months." The company has had branches for some time
outside of the United States, in places as far and wide as Thailand, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia. In many of these countries,
Starbucks coffee struck8 its customers as being exotic, enticing, and addictive. The Japanese are particularly addicted to
the American import, with over 200 outlets serving customers throughout the country.
But now, Starbucks is attempting to encroach upon9 what Europe considers its own pride and joy10, something not to be
challenged by outside imitators. In Italy, where one city has already formed an association to protect historic cafés, a
battle lies ahead. For Italians, drinking their coffee is as routine as breathing, a recent survey11 found that 70 million cups
of espresso are drunk in Italy each year. That's 600 shots per person, consumed in any of Italy's 110,000 coffee bars.
Milan, nexus of the fashion world, has some 600 cafés alone. And Italians' cafés are a source of pride and joy. In this
country where sidewalk12 cafés are firmly entrenched13 in the national psyche, Starbucks' announcement has caused an
uproar14. "The Italian café is a culture that the Americans have repackaged15," said a spokesman for one of Starbucks'
European competitors. "They concentrate more on their image than the coffee." Italy's La Stampa newspaper said: "We
thought we had everything in Italy, but it turns out we lacked16 one thing: American coffee,"
It's not Starbucks' first foray17 into the European market. Just three years ago, the first Starbucks was opened at Britain's
Manchester Airport. There are now 200 stores in this country alone, with plans for an additional 140 outlets to open in
the next two years. But on the Continent, Starbucks may have a formidable challenge. Europeans like their coffee plain18
and simple; the Starbucks’ tradition of customized19, high-maintenance coffees just may not work in continental Europe.
Though Europeans may choose espressos instead of cappuccinos, having a coffee is a treasured break20, or perhaps a
leisurely start, for one's day. One Swiss newspaper writer dismissed21 Starbucks as "coffee culture in a cardboard cup."
Yet Starbucks has already ventured into Switzerland, where its three-storied Zurich shop attracts customers in one of 50
outlets planned for the alpine country. In fact, “The firm22 views Switzerland as a great test for continental Europe because
of the multi-cultural nature of the city," said the Starbucks Europe spokeswoman.
American coffee, à la Starbucks and other imitators, has been criticized for being weak and commercialized23. But the
company insists it has been welcomed with open arms on the Continent. And surprisingly, some European competitors
grudgingly credit Starbucks with opening the doors to Europe's espresso bar market. "The Europeans, in particular, are
quite pleasantly surprised when they taste Starbucks for the first time," Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz told the press
recently, "because American coffee has had a bad reputation for so long." The company maintains that it is taking into
account24 the local influences of the new Starbucks countries. Though the company owns almost all of its stores in the
States, Starbucks finds local business partners in most foreign markets. And while it doesn't change its coffee offerings,
the food choices are adapted to local cultures. "We don't believe we are an American company, but an international
brand," Howard Behar, president of Starbucks Coffee International recent told the BBC. In Britain, Starbucks hopes to
use the national pub culture to make Starbucks another meeting place, he added. But Starbucks' challenge will not only
be its ability to open and maintain branches world-wide, but to overturn25 decades, if not centuries, of tradition. Coffee is
already currently the second largest traded commodity in the world, just after oil. With Starbucks pushing into newer
territories faster than it can come up with new coffee variations, this trend looks set to continue


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26 Everyone agrees that Starbucks will change the nature of coffee drinking on the European continent.
27 Starbuck’s has a global ‘empire’ of 650 branches.
28 This is not Starbucks’ first venture outside of the US.
29 The survey found that, on average, Italians drink 600 coffees per person per year.
30 However, Italian cafés are not seen as culturally different to Starbucks’ cafés.
31 La Stampa newspaper said that Italy should have American coffee.
32 By 2018 there will be 140 Starbucks’ outlets in the UK.
33 Starbucks like to customize their coffee as much as possible.
34 Starbucks has not proved successful in Switzerland due to the multi-ethnicity of that country.
35 Outside of America Starbucks usually operates in a joint venture.