Yum China Holdings, Inc. and Luigi Lavazza S.p.A. announced that they plan to accelerate the expansion of the store network of Lavazza cafés in China through the existing joint venture, aiming to open 1,000 stores by 2025.
Together they will inject US$200M initially into the joint venture to fund its future growth. In addition, the joint venture is expected to be Lavazza’s exclusive distributor in mainland China to introduce more products from Lavazza’s global portfolio.
In early 2020, Yum China – the largest restaurant company in China in terms of 2020 system sales, and Lavazza Group – the family-owned Italian coffee company – formed a joint venture to explore and develop Lavazza café concept in China. The joint venture is owned by Yum China and Lavazza with a stake of 65 per cent and 35 per cent, respectively.
The first Lavazza flagship store in Shanghai, the first store outside of Italy, opened its doors to customers in April 2020. Lavazza has since grown to over 20 stores in China across Shanghai, Hangzhou, Beijing and Guangzhou. Meanwhile, digital channels play an important role in Lavazza’s initial success. Sales to Lavazza members accounted for approximately 50 per cent of total sales for the first half of 2021.
