Disatat Panyarachun, CEO, PTT OR (second left), and Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, Chairman, Bashundhara Group (second right), at the master franchise agreement signing ceremony | Photo credit: Café Amazon

Thailand’s PTT Oil and Retail Business (PTT OR) has announced plans to launch Café Amazon in Bangladesh in the fourth quarter after signing a master franchise agreement with Bashundhara Group to open 100 stores in the South Asian country. 
 

Founded in 1987 as a real estate company, Bashundhara Group is now one of the largest conglomerates in Bangladesh with interests in the manufacturing, logistics, retail and media industries. Its experience in the food and beverage sector includes operating the Baba Rafi fast-food chain and owning the 7,000sq ft Food Hall in Dhaka. 
 

In a press release, PTT OR highlighted Bangladesh’s expanding consumer market and increasing coffee consumption as key to the move.  
 

Predominantly tea-drinking Bangladesh has a nascent coffee shop market. US branded chains Gloria Jean’s and Crimson Cup entered the market in 2012 and 2015 and now operate five and 10 stores respectively. 

Domestic operators Tabaq Coffee and Coal & Coffee have both also expanded in recent years to reach six and three outlets, while specialty coffee roasters North End and Awake Coffee Roasters have grown in popularity among younger consumers. 

PTT OR said the franchise agreement would advance its goal of promoting Thai-grown coffee internationally. In January 2024, the Bangkok-based oil and retail business announced a five-year project to an ‘organic coffee farm’ and R&D hub in Thailand’s Lampang province as part of efforts to increase crop yields and shore-up supply to its 4,500+ stores globally.  

The 240-acre Amazon Park site will educate Thai coffee farmers on its plantations on cultivating and harvesting premium quality arabica and robusta coffee. 

More than 4,100 of PTT OR’s Café Amazon stores are in Thailand, with over half located in PTT OR-owned petrol stations. The coffee chain’s international footprint comprises stores in Cambodia, China, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Oman, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam. 

In April 2023, PTT OR outlined plans to open 300 new Café Amazon outlets annually and expand its international coffee shop footprint.