Starbucks Coffee Company and Casino Restauration (subsidiary of Groupe Casino) today announce a licensed partnership that will open Starbucks stores within Géant Casino Hypermarkets and Casino Supermarkets across France. The first store is expected to open before the end of 2015. Casino Restauration will be operating full-format Starbucks stores alongside Groupe Casino’s grocery sites, offering an unexpected oasis in the busy supermarket setting. Customers will be able to enjoy the full range of Starbucks drinks and food, served by expertly-trained baristas. “This new partnership with Casino Restauration means we can deliver a quality Starbucks experience to many more people in convenient locations across France,” said Kris Engskov, president, Starbucks EMEA. “Casino Restauration has the perfect network and local expertise to deliver this new growth in the hypermarkets and supermarkets right across the country, where our customers want us to be. We’re excited to be working together to build beautiful stores and to bring great coffee to more customers in France.” “For more than 40 years, Casino Restauration has been deeply committed to maintaining a constant focus on quality and to fostering continuous innovation to adapt to consumers’ changing tastes, eating habits and expectations,” said William Charles CEO of Casino Restauration. “Known throughout France and resolutely committed to offering balanced nutrition at an affordable price, Casino Restauration has been serving families in a friendly atmosphere. We are happy to share our knowledge and working closely with Starbucks to spread the Starbucks stores in our Géant Casino Hypermarkets and Casino Supermarkets in France.” Starbucks stores will be full store formats within Groupe Casino grocery locations, making premium coffee more accessible for customers and providing an even better shopping experience for many customers across France. The stores will be operated by Casino Restauration, the restaurant operating arm of Groupe Casino. At the moment there are over one hundred Starbucks stores in France out of a total 2200 stores across the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region. In France, Groupe Casino currently runs 10,416 stores included 127 Géant Casino hypermarkets and 444 Casino Supermarkets. Source: comunicaffe.com/casino-restauration-partners-with-starbucks-in-france/