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Do you notice a Coffee Craze in Karachi?
Back in 2006 India's biggest coffee-cafe chain Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) opened its first cafe in Pakistan's commercial capital of Karachi. CCD's first outlet has opened for business in Karachi's Zamzama Commercial Area, famous for its designer outlets and vibrant cafe-culture.
CCD is planning 25 cafes in Pakistan over the next few years. "We feel that an Islamic country with a booming economy like Pakistan has great potential for consumption of non-alcoholic brews," Cafe Coffee Day director Naresh Malhotra said.
CCD's entry into Pakistan is through the franchise route. "We have tied up with a leading industrial house owned by a reputed business family. I cannot tell you who it is as the announcement will be made in Pakistan by the group who is our master-franchisee for our expansion plans there. The baristas - those who brew and serve the coffee - are all from - Pakistan and have come here for training," Mr Malhotra said.
Over the past year literally the entire Karachi crowd has been obsessed with "Going out for Coffee?" To an extent that many were invited to more coffee outings then iftari's this Ramadan. What about this new found craze in Karachi? Is it a short lived fad or is it here to stay, maybe more potential for more coffee outlets around the city.
Cafe Coffee Day, the popular name for Amalgamated Bean Coffee Trading Company, is breaking new ground for Indian companies in Pakistan by getting into the retail business.
Pakistan, like India, is a tea-drinking nation, but Cafe Coffee Day aims to attract a following among the better-off urban youth. The absence of bars -- alcohol is banned for Muslims -- could make the market easier to crack.
The first Cafe Coffee Day branch opened in Karachi's posh Clifton neighbourhood, and Amin Hashwani, a member of one of Pakistan's leading business families, said there were plans to open 30 cafes in the country's main cities.
Cafe Coffee Day currently operates around 370 outlets in India with one in Vienna.
"We have kept our prices very reasonable at 50 rupees (85 U.S. cents) for a cup of espresso, as other coffee shops in Pakistan are heavily priced," Hashwani told.
"Our lounges will be a place for the huge youth population to relax in a nice ambience," he added.
A cup of chai, the sweet milky tea served in Pakistan's ubiquitous tea shops, can cost as little as three rupees (just under 5 U.S. cents).
Pakistan and India launched a peace process in 2004, and have opened cultural, sporting and business links in a bid to improve relations after decades of enmity since independence and the partition of the subcontinent.
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