Three years ago Starbucks opened the first restaurant in Italy in Milan, in Piazza Cordusio, with one of the six Starbucks Reserve Roasteries in the world. This was followed by various openings of a dozen traditional places, especially in Milan and its surroundings. And now Percassi, the sole licensing partner for Italy, has announced an investment plan to open 26 new Starbucks stores by the end of 2023.

The plan will create up to 300 new jobs over two years, reaffirming the company's long-term commitment to continued growth across Italy. Three new stores will open by the end of 2021, two in Lombardy and a second store in Turin. Another 11 openings are planned in 2022, and then another 12 in 2023, throughout central and northern Italy.

Odissea, the Percassi holding company that manages various retail chains (such as Kiko, Nike, Lego, Victoria's Secret) closed 2020 with consolidated revenues of 472 million (-24.3% compared to 2019) and a loss of almost 24 million. Catering was also in the red, with revenues of € 4.9 million, almost all attributable to Starbucks premises (other brands are managed by C&P in a joint venture with Chef Express of Cremonini, of which Percassi held a minority stake of 40%).