Starbucks Continues Conquest of Buenos Aires
The Seattle-based caffeine supplier to the masses has opened a new store in the Galerias Pacifico shopping center downtown, bringing the total number of Starbucks in Buenos Aires to 12.
“It makes us very happy to have finally arrived at Galerías Pacífico, one of the most exclusive shopping centers in the country,” Starbucks Argentina General Manager Diego Paolini said in a statement. “This is a very important opening for us because it marks not only the opening of 12 stores, but it also is the eighth opening so far this year.”
Starbucks is also about to open a 13th store in the Unicenter shopping mall in Martínez.
Starbucks is evidently having much more success than many of its foreign fast-food predecessors. Other companies that have crashed and burned in Argentina include Dunkin’ Donuts, Dominos Pizza, Pizza Hut, Fuddruckers, Subway Sandwiches, Schlotzskys, and Wendy’s.
You can find all of the local Starbucks locations here:
Shopping Alto Palermo – Arenales & Av. Coronel Díaz (Palermo)
Av. Federico Lacroze 2301 – corner of 3 de Febrero (Belgrano)
Callao 702 – corner of Viamonte (Centro)
Avenida Elcano 3179 (Belgrano R)
Malabia 1738 (Palermo Soho)
Calle Florida (Florida, at the corner of Rivadavia)
Abasto Shopping Mall Corrientes 3247
Dot Shopping Center (Melian Avenue and the Panamerican highway)
Dot Shopping Center (Melian Avenue and the Panamerican highway)
Patio Bullrich Shopping Mall (Posadas 1245)
Comodoro Rivadavia and Libertador (Nuñez)
Galerías Pacífico Shopping Mall (near Cordoba and Florida, downtown)
Unicenter (coming soon) (Martínez)
Popularity: 1% [?]
I’m surprised that Starbucks “continues conquest of BsAs”. I think their preices must be so expensive for coffee. Here in the US Starbucks coffee is expensive already. I’m curious to know how much grande Cappuccinos go for.
In Buenos Aires, inflation is so ridiculously high, that for a cup of coffee (un cortado doble) which is very poor quality coffee, you will pay around 10 pesos. That being said, you can go to Starbucks and get a decent sized coffee for 12-15 pesos. I am no surprised at their success here considering most local coffee is horrible and Argentines think they are “cosmopolitan” and “sophisticated” drinking out of a Starbucks cup.
Stefania, you have to account for the fact that in the US, Starbucks is less of a luxury item. In Buenos Aires, Starbucks brings the consumer of their coffees the experience of being international, luxurious, exclusive, which is what many portenos strive for, with almost irrational compulsion. Starbucks in the US was born as a local coffee shop in Seattle, and although they do market to the higher income slice of the market, they are not perceived as luxurious in the U.S.
So the reason for the expansion is that many portenios may not save any money, but they may splurge for the short-term satisfaction of buying into the Starbucks experience and brand identification. Thanks
Bonafide is still my cup of coffee.
Dido you know that in Puerto Iguazu you have bonafide also (-downtown)
rmartin, that does make sense to me. I
I remember back in the day when dominos was around in Martinez, then it became a place to buy rugs, and now Im not sure. Cant remember the others, except I do remember coming across a Wendys but it was in a very bad location, or else i might have gone.
Im glad most these places fail in Argentina, I hope Argentines learn from, what I think is, Americas mistake, because having all these fast food joints littering every corner and every highway has completely destroyed any sense of culture and unique regional and local identity that perhaps was once in its place or could be. Despite of the economic benefits of these chains and what not.
I’m glad to see Starbucks found a place to go, now that most of them in the US are closing because of the horrible economy / incredible prices.
Tal vez a los chicos les pueda llamar la atención, pero no lo veo al porteño maduro parado en la vereda con medio litro de café en un tarro de plástico. Se me hace que le falta esquina al rmartin ese.
I live in Houton Tx. and when visiting Argentina I have always thought the Coffee was excellent. I have never liked Starbucks. Burnt taste and the price is ridiculous. About one mile from my house there are three Starbucks at the same intersection and all do a booming business. So what do I know? Unbeleivable but true.
@rmartin If you buy a coffee in a local bar for 10 pesos you should at leat get some medialunas to you coffee. I never pay 10 pesos for a simple coffee, maybe 6 or 7. sure, it always depends in which area of buenos aires you are.
anyway, i still don’t get the hype around starbucks here. maybe it will last only for some time until people realize that their own coffee in the “normal” traditional bars is the same but cheaper and you don’t need to wait in a line.
it’s my very personal view/wish, as you can see i am not a starbucks fan at all…
After living in Italy for eight years, I suppose I am a bit spoiled about coffee. I have gotten completely accustomed to using my cafeteria at home and using the brand “Bonifide Sensaciones” Torado Intenso It is not awful and I save money. A 500 gram bag of that is 13 pesos so why pay 10 for a mediocre cup when for 13, I can have several pots? The only place I find for decent coffee in Buenos Aires is “Cafe Martinez”.
To the person above that questioned my 10 peso coffee….go to “Josefina’s” at the corner of Juncal y Guido. That is their price….and it is awful, not to mention the jabbering screechy voices of all the old women there.
Here in Calgary I look out at smokers corner beside the Court House where 1000 people work. Of the 60 people there at 10 AM smoking and having their break all of them are drinking large Tim Hortons Double Doubles (two sugars, two creams) at $2.50. The Starbucks kitty corner to the Court House has 10 people in it. The $5 cup of coffee plus tip is dead here in Calgary except for the uber trendies.
I would personally take a cafe cortado in a B.A. confiteria any day over the two options here. Even at 10 pesos that seems to have keep up with the devaluation of the peso against the dollar.
Ya van varias notas respecto de esta cadena de pseudo-cafeterías. ¿Hay algún lazo comercial con The Argentine Post?
¿Es periodismo una nota sobre los gustos personales y/o cultura de café del autor de la nota?
¿Es sensato discutir sobre cafe con un amateur en la materia?
Hey Juan,
Are you kidding? I’m assuming so, but if not, no there’s no commercial interest or relationship with Starbucks. If there were, I’d clarify it for readers.
I write about things that I think people would find interesting. It’s that simple. If you’re serious about your questions, you’re reading way too much into this and taking it, and possibly yourself, too seriously.
I’m not actually a big fan of coffee myself. I prefer juice. But a lot of people like Starbucks, and the fact that they seem to be doing well here is interesting in itself, especially given the record of failures of other fast food chains.
Saludos,
Taos
Also, the topic is very popular both from fans of Starbucks and from people who dislike them. These posts attract readers and Taos is in the business of finding topics that are interesting to readers. I would be surprised if he did not write about them.
If I remember correctly, the first one opened just over a year ago, in Alto Palermo shopping. I suppose the writing was on the wall when people queued around the block to pay upwards of $10 for a coffee. Since then, Starbucks has managed to open a new store almost every month. I wonder how long San Telmo will hold out…?
Starbucks sucks big time. It’s another freaking Mcdonalds. Bring Peets coffee to Buenos Aires.
Total BS bias in this story. We don’t need another freaking mcdonalds in the city.
Bias? Where’s the bias? All the story says is that Starbucks is opening more stores and appears to be successful. There’s no opinion or value judgements in the story, just straight reporting. You may not like McDonalds or Starbucks, but a massive number of Argentine seem to very much enjoy them. Why prevent people from accessing goods and services that they like?
Real coffee is served throughout Buenos Aires at every single Cafe. Starbucks sucks; it’s a freaking mcdonalds of degraded coffee with loads of unhealthy crap that would make look like a triple wide. Argentines are just attracted to foreign novelty, as usual, like we were when Fuddruckers open on Avenida Santa Fe — which it crashed and burnt. BTW, Starbucks in the U.S. have been closing down from left to right due to the poor economy and outrageous prices that the average American can’t afford.
There is a promotional aspect to the story when you list the locations. I don’t believe in preventing people from accessing goods and services. However, I want people to have healthy choices. I don’t want people in Argentina — and for that matter anywhere in the world- to consume unhealthy foods, get fat and sick as of result of these unhealthy products. People need to be informed of how bad Starbucks products are for your health.
Hey Love Real Coffee,
You speak of Starbucks as if it were akin to Chernobyl, as if the company’s coffee were a nefarious carcinogen, as if Starbucks coffee alone causes people to morph into out-of-control, gargantuan lard buckets whose veins wreak of cholesterol and impending death. It’s just coffee.
Some Starbucks options may be high in calories and or sugar, but hardly more so than many sugar-laden desserts offered at typical cafeterias here. Just like everything else, taken in moderation, the place’s coffee causes no harm. I’d personally find an argument against cookie-cutter multinational chains more interesting than one about the company’s alleged health risks. There are plenty of trim, healthy people who drink Starbucks. Does Obama strike you as being exceptionally obese?
Whatever the case, the only promotion here is for a blog – this one- that provides interesting and relevant information about Argentina. And from the number of hits I get every time I post on Starbucks, it’s clear that people are very interested in the place, wether you like it or not.
Saludos,
Taos
I’m hoping this is only a trend because of the foreign appeal, I wish I had more Buenos Aires style cafes here in Canada. You can get better coffee for cheaper and in a better environment throughout BA, why anyone would prefer Starbucks is beyond me.
I visited BsAs a couple years ago and stayed for a month. One of the many things I loved and appreciated about the city was the coffee/cafe culture. And I do mean culture. As Argiebargie said, “Real coffee is served throughout Buenos Aires at every single Cafe”. Nowhere did I ever see anyone walking on the street with a paper cup of coffee or driving with coffee. When you drink coffee in BsAs you sit down at a table, and it is served in a civilized manner, plus a small glass of water and some small treat is usually included. I have never enjoyed coffee anywhere more than in BsAs. It would be a shame if this coffee/cafe culture were lost. I think it is a national treasure.