The global explosion of coffee houses has reached one of the last great untapped markets, China. International coffee chains, like Starbucks are fast opening outlets throughout China chasing the young and affluent who are keen to make coffee a part of their urban lifestyle. But what challenge does this desire for the coffee bean pose for a nation of tea drinkers?
Presenter/Interviewer: Eleni Roussos
Speakers: Eden Woo, Starbucks Greater China; Tim Harcourt, Chief Economist Australian Trade Commission, Professor
Zhang Jun, Director of the China Centre for Economic Studies, Professor Zhang Jun
ROUSSOS: Where their parents would meet at tea houses to talk over brewing tea. Generation X and Y are turning to the espresso machine as a place to meet. With China's move into the World Trade Organization, tough policies for foreign retail ventures has eased, causing an upsurge of coffee houses to open in the larger cities like Shanghai and Beijing. Director of the China Centre for Economic Studies, Professor Zhang Jun says that while demand for coffee is high, tea still dominates market share.
