“We don’t chase money”: % Arabica founder’s passion for quality coffee

Following asserting programs to open up in Vietnam three decades ago, Japanese quality espresso chain % Arabica finally landed there this thirty day period. Located inside Ho Chi Minh City’s popular ‘Cafe Apartments’ building in the city’s bustling Nguyen Hue pedestrian zone, the design characteristics a refined Vietnamese influence, but its concentrate remains on neighborhood expatriates, global visitors and locals ‘in the know’ about the special manufacturer.  

It has been a extended wait around for enthusiasts, with % Arabica’s foray into Vietnam introduced back again in 2019 soon in advance of the Covid-19 pandemic arrived. Now that the 1st cafe has at last opened, it has sparked a great deal debate in a region renowned for its possess exclusive coffee society.

A significant part of Vietnam’s coffee-loving neighborhood on social media – particularly Gen Z – believed the manufacturer experienced finished a superb career integrating Vietnamese-style into the design of its 1st neighborhood cafe, but other individuals were being fewer impressed, specifically by the high quality price % Arabica instructions anywhere in the environment it is served. 

So what has Arabica accomplished in the Vietnam market place soon after three a long time of planning?

The cultural retail store style and design

% Arabica is perfectly-regarded for its higher-top quality merchandise as nicely as for its minimalist, Japanese-fashion structure impressed by its founder, Kenneth Shoji.

From Japan to the US, % Arabica cafes all have the same style aesthetic, including tables and chairs in pure white and minimalist glass blocks. In Bangkok’s upmarket IconSiam shopping centre, the complete cafe is surrounded by a clear glass box, so that the friends within appear as if they’re in an aquarium.

Nonetheless, with its first Vietnamese store, % Arabica has selected a spot on the fourth flooring of a transformed condominium constructing after slated for demolition, but now packed with cafes and boutiques. As 1 of the oldest modern day-era buildings in Ho Chi Minh Town, the Cafe Apartments was constructed in 1960 and has turn out to be a preferred location for Vietnamese as very well as foreigners.

Built by French imaginative company Cigue, the retail store is compact at just 100sqm and brings together the brand’s common standard, thoroughly clean style method with area architectural influences. Sliding doors at the entrance and an open up-air deck are made from indigenous timber and bamboo rattan. These elements also serve as a backdrop to elements of the serving place and an add-ons display. 

The entrance floor tiles match the ageing tiles of the building’s avenue entrance. Low-increase tables, yet another homage to Vietnamese custom made – it is continue to typical to see guys squatting on small stools streetside sipping a Cafe Su Da or Phin Espresso served from a close by cart – also add to the feeling of house. The whole place appears much more substantial due to the fact of a giant mirror that runs the length of one particular wall.

Kenneth Shoji informed Within Retail in a scarce job interview that he set out to generate his initially retailer in Vietnam as if it were being a residence. He explained the brand wanted to move with the history, style, and structure of the developing, which is how the thought of opening the first keep in a converted condominium evolved.

“In Ho Chi Minh City the Apartment Cafe developing is legendary and as shortly as we noticed it [three years ago] we realized we had to be listed here,” Shoji claimed. 

Ahead of opening in Ho Chi Minh Metropolis, a group of Vietnamese personnel underwent comprehensive instruction in Japan. Vynce Nguyen, GM of area % Arabica husband or wife The Kho Group, stated the group invested 10 times in Kyoto understanding how Arabica roasts and blends its coffee, alongside with barista methods, ahead of returning to prepare colleagues.

Retaining its own persona

Like Starbucks, % Arabica retains a normal rate listing and menu globally and it has refrained from giving local styles of coffee in Vietnam. A Caffe Latte at % Arabica expenses 105,000VND (about US$4.50), when a Caffe Latte at Starbucks is only about US$3.40 for a greater Venti cup. Both equally are viewed as by Vietnamese as fairly pricey when as opposed to regional items which can promote for as small as US$1 in pavement cafes (and regular $3 at nearby chains for a latte).

“I want % Arabica to be like a premium sushi chain in Japan. The sushi menu has not improved for hundreds of yrs and early each and every early morning the chef goes to the fish current market and selects the most effective seafood and then they get ready the food stuff with care,” Shoji included. 

“We want the same in our cafes.” 

Shoji has produced it evident from day one particular that his vision is to deliver a high quality, high-quality product or service and services served in a tranquil, soothing natural environment. 

He selects espresso beans from all over the planet – all Arabica – and blends them to retain a consistent flavour where ever a cafe trades. He has sampled a several Vietnamese blends, but in a nation where Robusta beans predominate, he has nevertheless to find the suitable Arabica – but does not rule it out in the future.

Meanwhile, the brand is phasing out all plastic containers and will soon provide each very hot and chilly beverages in biodegradable paper cups as portion of its commitment to sustainability. Straws produced of sugar cane that are plant-centered and biodegradable are imported from Taiwan.

Worldwide expansion

The Vietnam keep is % Arabica’s 142nd retail outlet globally, and Shoji reported he designs to open up merchants in Hanoi as properly, but has nevertheless to discover a suitable spot.

Having said that, as opposed to other coffee makes like Starbucks, which has 33,000 shops globally, % Arabica has a “modest” range of spots around the world. It has just just one shop so far in South Korea, the US and Taiwan, 6 in Singapore, four in Japan and extra in Thailand. Higher China is the brand’s fastest-expanding current market, with 74 shops across the region already.

‘Iconic’ destinations appear to be one particular of the most important variables for % Arabica when growing in a foreign sector. Final 12 months, it launched its to start with South Korean site in Starfield Library, one of the most preferred destinations in Seoul’s Gangnam district. In Egypt, it will launch inside of a pyramid intricate. 

“We never want to be like Starbucks, we never want to be just about everywhere,” Shoji discussed. 

His desire is to increase % Arabica throughout distinctive lands and cultures of the entire world so that he can “see the globe by way of coffee” and convey the very best espresso to people. When requested about his programs for the Vietnam industry, Shoji claimed he required to go gradually and concentration on executing effectively in just about every new shop, providing the very best company to prospects and pursuing the values of the brand name.

“We really do not chase income,” he claimed. 

% Arabica could be new to Vietnam as a brand name, but in just a person week, it has captivated a lot of notice from younger Vietnamese many thanks to its world-wide fame and reputation on social media. The brand name will start its 2nd retail outlet in Vietnam in April, which will feature a additional minimalist design and style fashion, standard of its hottest international stores, relying intensely on white and glass.