The Istanbul launch represents the specialty coffee chain’s tenth Europe, the Middle East and North Africa (EMENA) market and precedes expected launches in France, Spain and Hungary within the next 12 months
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% Arabica is planning to open 10 outlets in Turkey by the end of 2025 with franchisee Bean Alive | Photo credit: David Kristianto
Kyoto-based specialty coffee chain % Arabica is set to open its first store in Turkey on Istanbul’s
Bağdat Avenue, an upmarket shopping and hospitality destination.
The partnership with local franchisee Bean Alive will see % Arabica open 10 outlets across Turkey’s Anatolia and Balkan regions by the end of 2025.
“We believe that % Arabica will bring a fresh perspective to coffee consumption in Turkey. It is a great honour for us to introduce a brand that combines the third wave coffee experience with the operational principles of the second wave coffee culture to the mass market. We will start with our first store on Bağdat Avenue in Istanbul, and soon expand to the European side and various other locations,” said Evren Bingol, co-founder, Bean Alive.
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% Arabica opened its first store in Kyoto, Japan, in September 2014 and now operates 191 stores across 24 markets globally.
The coffee chain’s Turkey debut will add to its four stores in the UK – currently % Arabica’s only European market – and a strong presence across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), with outlets in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
The specialty coffee chain is also poised to open its first store in Egypt at the U Venues shopping centre in Cairo this quarter and lists France, Spain, Hungary, Mexico and Nepal as markets it will soon enter.