Ukraine war: Starbucks rebranded in Russia as ‘Stars Coffee’ by restaurateur Anton Pinskiy and rapper Timati

Name: H&M exits Russia citing its invasion of Ukraine
Uploaded: 2022-08-18T14:22:06.000Z
Duration: 1 min 32 s
Description: H&M exits Russia citing its invasion of Ukraine

Rapper Timati and restaurateur Anton Pinskiy are relaunching the coffee chain following the company’s decision to exit the Russian market

Starbucks is among numerous Western brands and companies that have pulled out of Russia, following Moscow’s decision to invade Ukraine

2-MIN READ2-MIN

Staff members get ready for the launching of the new coffee shop “Stars Coffee”, which opens following Starbucks Corp company’s exit from the Russian market. Photo: Reuters

Reuters

Published: 10:22pm, 18 Aug 2022Updated: 11:44pm, 18 Aug 2022

A restaurateur and rapper duo are set to reopen the chain of coffee shops in Russia formerly owned by Starbucks Corp on Thursday, the latest rebranding of a major Western company following a months-long corporate exodus from the country.

According to a shop front in central Moscow seen by Reuters, and the Instagram feed of rapper and co-owner Timati, the chain will be renamed Stars Coffee, with a new logo still featuring an image of a woman with a star above her head.

The new name on the Moscow shop was still under cover of plastic on Wednesday evening as Timati and co-owner, restaurateur Anton Pinskiy, prepared to unveil the first new store later on Thursday.

01:32

H&M exits Russia citing its invasion of Ukraine

Starbucks declined to comment on the similarity of the logo and name, but referred to an earlier statement in which it said the company had made the decision to exit and no longer had a brand presence in the Russian market.

In late May, Seattle-based Starbucks, which helped popularise takeaway coffee in a traditionally tea-loving society, said it would exit Russia after nearly 15 years.

Starbucks had 130 stores in Russia, operated by its licensee Alshaya Group, with nearly 2,000 employees in the country.

The relaunch follows a similar move by Vkusno & tochka, which took over former McDonald’s Corp restaurants in Russia, moves that are changing the country’s retail and corporate landscapes as the conflict in Ukraine enters its sixth month.