The specialty coffee chain joins fellow Chinese operators There Was No Coffee, Luckin Coffee and Hinichijou in taking its first step overseas in the affluent Southeast Asian market
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Greybox Coffee at the UE Square shopping centre, Singapore | Photo credit: Greybox Coffee/Instagram
Shanghai-based Greybox Coffee is the latest Chinese coffee chain to enter Singapore and has opened an outlet in the UE Square shopping centre.
Founded in 2016, the specialty coffee chain operates 23 stores across China. Greybox Coffee first announced plans to launch overseas in 2019, but its international debut has taken five years to come to fruition following the pandemic.
Its specialty coffee menu includes single origin pour-overs from Ethiopia, Jamaica and Colombia, as well as a premium Geisha blend from Panama. It also includes iced drip coffee, cold brew and a range of ‘signature’ beverages, including Dirty Mocha, Pineapple & Coconut Cold Brew and Planet Latte – espresso poured over a cold brew ice sphere.
Greybox Coffee is the fifth Chinese coffee chain to enter Singapore within the last two years, following in the footsteps of Shenzhen-based There Was No Coffee, market leader Luckin Coffee, Shanghai's Hinichijou and fast-growing Cotti Coffee.
Singapore has relatively small branded coffee shop market with around 900 outlets – making it the 10th largest across East Asia by stores. However, the city state’s high coffee consumption, per capita income and business-friendly tax regimes have proven attractive for international coffee operators over the last 12 months, including South Korea’s Compose Coffee, Indonesian brands Kopi Kenangan, Fore Coffee and Tomoro Coffee, as well as Taiwan’s Louisa Coffee and Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons.
World Coffee Portal’s Project Café East Asia 2024 report forecasts the total Singaporean branded coffee shop market will reach 1,250 outlets by the end of 2028.