Vietnam-based coffee chain Trung Nguyen Legend is expanding its footprint in the international market opening its first store in China.
The coffee shop, which is situated at 699 Nanjing Street in Shanghai, has been in the works since 2018 and intends to provide Chinese clients with a variety of coffee products as well as serving fresh coffee drinks, including the Robusta obtained from one of Vietnam’s well-known highland regions, Buon Me Thuot.
Trung Nguyen Legend sees the store as a place for artistic and cultural coffee “where the three most prevalent world coffee civilisations come together”. Customers can experience the three coffee cultures the company has identified and showcases in its flagship Vietnam stores: Ottoman, Roman and Zen.
The Shanghai location recreates a Vietnamese-themed coffee shop, through its architectural style, display graphics, and menus that combine elements of Vietnamese and local culture.
The store features some well-known designs and traditional materials from Vietnam, such as ceramics, bamboo and rattan kitchenware, volcanic rock, red basalt soil, and typical conical motifs of Vietnamese culture.
A renowned household name in Vietnam since its establishment in 1996, Trung Nguyen Legend FMCG products are available in more than 60 countries. The brand claims China is its second-largest market in the online coffee business, and Legend’s G7 has become the most well-known instant coffee brand due to its distinctive flavour.
The Trung Nguyen brand has appeared on cafes outside Vietnam before, with stores in Singapore prior to the advent of the Legend brand extension. This is the company’s first foray as a premium cafe brand.
Research from Statista shows the number of coffee chains entering China has increased in recent years, with their market share likely to grow. Starbucks is by far the largest fresh-ground coffee seller in China, with more than 5000 locations across the country.