Starbucks extends ‘force for good’ strategy via community store in Jakarta

Starbucks extends ‘force for good’ strategy via community store in Jakarta.

Starbucks has opened a community store in Jakarta, which it hopes will bring its ‘force for good’ strategy to Indonesia for the first time.

The Starbucks Community Store model is a profit-sharing cafe that gives back to charities working in the community it is located in. Currently, the model is live in the US and Asia Pacific only, in terms fo the Starbucks global network.

The store in Jakarta’s Tanah Abang, which is home to one of South East Asia’s largest textile markets, will aim to serve the community’s children and help with local career development opportunities via partnerships with local non- governmental organisations (NGOs) and Indonesian Street Children Organization (ISCO).

Sara Trilling, senior vice president and president of Starbucks Asia Pacific, said: “Indonesia has a longstanding and proud coffee heritage, which we’ve been incredibly fortunate to share with our customers around the world. One of the most important contributions Starbucks can make in return is serving as a catalyst for positive change in the communities we serve.

“Over the years, we’ve continued to expand the number of Community Stores in the region including Thailand, South Korea, and now Indonesia. We are proud of the commitment our partners in the region have demonstrated, true to our Mission and Values, to bringing more people and more communities together over a cup of coffee through our Community Stores.”

The space, which takes over 250 meters, will have a full cafe as well as rooms for workshops and classes.

One of the NGOs, Yayasan Sahabat Anak, will use the partnership to mentor children from kindergarten age and above, to help them get through school. The organisation will host classes within the Starbucks store.

“We’ve partnered with Starbucks for more than 9 years to provide children in Indonesia with a brighter future,” said Dian Novita Elfrida, chairman of Yayasan Sahabat Anak. “The Community Store and the active engagement of Starbucks partners and customers will generate many new opportunities for the children of Tanah Abang. We’re extremely proud to help realize a brighter future for the community and the children of Jakarta.”

It’s not the first store concept in Indonesia to offer a different model to its usual stores. In 2019, Starbucks opened an interactive coffee sanctuary in Bali as a tribute to the country’s famed Arabica bean coffee.

source: https://www.thedrum.com/