First Look: Starbucks opens its biggest store to date
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Starbucks has gone big in Tokyo.
The coffee giant has brought its upscale Reserve Roastery format to Tokyo, opening a four level, 32,000-sq.-ft. location in the city’s trendy Nakameguro neighborhood. It is Starbucks’ fifth Roastery to date and largest store ever. The others are located in New York City, Milan, Shanghai and Seattle. The company has made no commitments to future locations beyond an upcoming site in Chicago.
The new Roastery features more than 100 coffee and tea beverages and unique merchandise, a Princi Italian bakery, what is billed as the world’s largest Teavana tea bar and a dedicated space called the AMU Inspiration Lounge for community events. The terraced third floor is home to Arriviamo, Starbucks Japan’s first cocktail bar.
“As the first international market outside of North America, Starbucks Japan has contributed 23 years of innovation for the company globally,” said Kevin Johnson, CEO, Starbucks Coffee Company. “The opening of the Tokyo Roastery will further amplify what Starbucks Japan has done across all stores in the market for more than two decades — innovating and delivering the finest quality coffee one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.”
The design of Tokyo Roastery was inspired by the famous cherry blossom trees lining the Meguro River, which runs next to it. The building’s glass walls and terraced floors seamlessly fold into the fabric of the neighborhood, bringing visitors eye-level with the seasonal blossoms and the river to reflect the natural beauty and sense of harmony found across Japan.
The new Roastery is the only Starbucks Roastery location designed in collaboration with a local architect from the ground up. The exterior was done in collaboration with renowned Japanese architect Kengo Kuma.
Envisioned by Liz Muller, Starbucks chief design officer and lead designer for all five Roasteries globally, the store merges traditional and modern design. Upon entering the space, customers are greeted by the world’s largest Starbucks Roastery coffee cask. It is four stories high and features more than 55 feet of blush-tinted copper adorned with hand-crafted copper cherry blossoms, which change hues throughout the day in different lights.
The expansive cask was built using the technique of tsuchime, a tradition of copper beating, where each person involved in the building of the Roastery was offered the chance to hammer a portion to create its texture and pattern. The cask’s unique color is balanced against the light wood which has been carried into the interior to give the store a brightness found throughout traditional Japanese architecture.
Throughout the Roastery, local craftsmen and women worked together to incorporate their expertise and traditional craft into the design elements. The wood-tiled ceiling was inspired by the art of origami. The light and airy space carries the light wood used on the exterior to the inside. The wood, sourced locally, has been treated throughout with a traditional technique which prevents it from aging, ensuring the brightness is maintained inside and outside in the years to come.
The coffee giant has brought its upscale Reserve Roastery format to Tokyo, opening a four level, 32,000-sq.-ft. location in the city’s trendy Nakameguro neighborhood. It is Starbucks’ fifth Roastery to date and largest store ever. The others are located in New York City, Milan, Shanghai and Seattle. The company has made no commitments to future locations beyond an upcoming site in Chicago.
The new Roastery features more than 100 coffee and tea beverages and unique merchandise, a Princi Italian bakery, what is billed as the world’s largest Teavana tea bar and a dedicated space called the AMU Inspiration Lounge for community events. The terraced third floor is home to Arriviamo, Starbucks Japan’s first cocktail bar.
“As the first international market outside of North America, Starbucks Japan has contributed 23 years of innovation for the company globally,” said Kevin Johnson, CEO, Starbucks Coffee Company. “The opening of the Tokyo Roastery will further amplify what Starbucks Japan has done across all stores in the market for more than two decades — innovating and delivering the finest quality coffee one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.”
The design of Tokyo Roastery was inspired by the famous cherry blossom trees lining the Meguro River, which runs next to it. The building’s glass walls and terraced floors seamlessly fold into the fabric of the neighborhood, bringing visitors eye-level with the seasonal blossoms and the river to reflect the natural beauty and sense of harmony found across Japan.
The new Roastery is the only Starbucks Roastery location designed in collaboration with a local architect from the ground up. The exterior was done in collaboration with renowned Japanese architect Kengo Kuma.
Envisioned by Liz Muller, Starbucks chief design officer and lead designer for all five Roasteries globally, the store merges traditional and modern design. Upon entering the space, customers are greeted by the world’s largest Starbucks Roastery coffee cask. It is four stories high and features more than 55 feet of blush-tinted copper adorned with hand-crafted copper cherry blossoms, which change hues throughout the day in different lights.
The expansive cask was built using the technique of tsuchime, a tradition of copper beating, where each person involved in the building of the Roastery was offered the chance to hammer a portion to create its texture and pattern. The cask’s unique color is balanced against the light wood which has been carried into the interior to give the store a brightness found throughout traditional Japanese architecture.
Throughout the Roastery, local craftsmen and women worked together to incorporate their expertise and traditional craft into the design elements. The wood-tiled ceiling was inspired by the art of origami. The light and airy space carries the light wood used on the exterior to the inside. The wood, sourced locally, has been treated throughout with a traditional technique which prevents it from aging, ensuring the brightness is maintained inside and outside in the years to come.