Gloria Jean's Coffees plans European expansion

Gloria Jean's Coffees opened its first Australian location in 1996 and has since become one of the leading coffee house chains in Australia. The company's strength has been built on a strongly recognised brand synonymous with coffee quality and industry leading franchising systems.

Andrew Mugliston, Regional Franchise Director for Gloria Jean's Coffees Europe, Middle East and North Africa, said: "Franchising is a well established and sophisticated business model in Europe and we believe there are markets within the region which offer enormous opportunities for our brand. We are especially interested in finding franchise partners in Spain, France and Benelux.

"Part of our success is being very selective in finding the right partner to take on a Master Franchise Agreement. We look for someone with serious long term commitment who will share our vision, mission and values and have a clear understanding of the commitments necessary for the success of Gloria Jean's Coffees, as a major player in their market."

In recent years Gloria Jean's Coffee has seen rapid growth and in 2006-07 the number of stores grew by 22 per cent in Australia and 82 per cent internationally.

Andrew commented: "The brand has been a runaway success in the last decade, replicating its home grown Australian success overseas.

"Handmade coffees are our speciality, our focus, so from bean to cup, you can taste the care and expertise that has gone into every step of our coffee making process. We're unashamedly passionate about coffee and this is where we see our real market leadership.

"Consumers are gaining a greater appreciation for speciality coffee and Gloria Jean's Coffees is a proud pioneer of quality espresso based coffee culture. Our success is based on serving exceptional quality coffees in a warm and vibrant atmosphere where people can take time out to recharge."

Gloria Jean's Coffees is a coffee house chain that sells hand crafted hot and cold coffee drinks, traditional espresso drinks, a range of single origins, blends and estate whole bean coffees and specialities teas, along with pastries and coffee accessories.

The company sources only the world's highest quality Arabica beans, which are roasted at its own state-of-the-art roasting facility in Sydney, Australia, to produce 69 exclusive blends that are then exported across the Gloria Jean's Coffees global network.

As part of the franchise package Master Franchise partners are supported by leading systems, training and infrastructure, which includes a global chain network, with warehouse distribution hubs in Sydney, Rotterdam, Jebel Ali (UAE), Singapore and Mumbai, to ensure speedy distribution and reduce stock holding across the global network.

Company history

Originally founded 30 years ago in the USA by Gloria Jean Kvetko, Gloria Jean's Coffees is now an Australian-based brand. Business partners Nabi Saleh and Peter Irvine first brought Gloria Jean's Coffee to Australia as Master Franchise partners and opened the first store in Sydney in 1996.

By 2004 Gloria Jean's Coffees had opened more than 200 coffee houses across Australia and had become a leading national brand. With success accomplished at home, Nabi and Peter set their sights on achieving their vision to make Gloria Jean's Coffees a global brand. In 2005, they purchased the brand and development rights for all countries outside of the USA - Gloria Jean's Coffees globally had become Australian-owned.

Charity work

Gloria Jean's Coffees is committed to supporting local and international communities through charitable programmes, which includes sponsorship of over 300 disadvantaged children in Brazil, once of the largest coffee growing nations, through Compassion International.

It also supports Opportunity International, which provides low interest loans to support small business and cottage industries in Asia; and Mercy Ministries, a charity that helps young women deal with easting disorders, unplanned pregnancies, abuse and other life controlling issues.

Gloria Jean's Coffees has also always maintained a dedication to ensuring the long-term welfare and sustainability of farmers and workers from which the company sources its coffee. In 2003 this commitment was further solidified through a new partnership with the Rainforest Alliance, a not-for-profit organisation that ensures the welfare of coffee plantation workers, their families and their communities and aims to protect the environment and wildlife of coffee growing regions.

In 2008 Gloria Jean's Coffees was awarded the Rainforest Alliance Corporate Green Globe Award, which recognised the company's work in supporting global sustainability in agriculture, forestry and tourism. Gloria Jean's Coffees is the first Australian company to receive the award.

An award winning brand

Gloria Jean's Coffees has been recognised for its achievements over the last few years winning multiple awards including Food Franchisor of the Year 2007 in the PricewaterhouseCoopers Excellence in Franchising Awards, 2006 International Franchisor of the Year awarded by the Franchising and Licence Association, Singapore and the PricewaterhouseCoopers Franchising Excellence Awards 2005 Franchisor of the Year.

Master Franchise partner are supported internationally by a dedicated global management team with many years collective international franchising experience, offering tools and business methodologies refined over years of operation.

"Franchise owners are our partners and we are dedicated to their success," explained Andrew. "Each one receives intensive training at our Coffee University in Australia to learn the art of delivering the ultimate coffee experience, the operational systems and standards that have made Gloria Jean's Coffees a business success in markets the world over."