Nestle and Starbucks launch new coffee products in nation

Nestle has teamed up with coffee giant Starbucks to launch a new series of coffee products on Thursday for the Chinese mainland market, which are also the alliance's first products in the market since it was established in August last year.

The new products feature capsule coffee and allow consumers to make coffee at home or in the office by themselves, which is part of the alliance's efforts to tap such groups amid fierce competition in the coffee delivery sector.

All of the new products will be available on e-commerce platforms and gradually be promoted in grocery stores, including stores on Tmall, JD and Suning.com.

Belinda Wong, chairman and CEO of Starbucks China, said the alliance with Nestle will better suit the daily lives of consumers outside of its retail stores.

"This is just the beginning," said Wong. "The coffee market in China is large and still growing, and coffee consumption here is still at an early stage."

It also marks the first move by Starbucks to promote its coffee retail products in the at-home and foods service segments in China.

Nestle is seeking to accelerate the innovation and development of China's coffee categories with the launch of the new products and attract more consumers with customized designs.

Rashid Aleem Qureshi, chairman and CEO of Nestle in China, said the partnership with Starbucks would integrate benefits of three top coffee brands in Nescafe, Nespresso and Starbucks to develop business opportunities in China, the second largest market for the alliance.

"Overall, the coffee category is exciting in China," said Qureshi. "We saw momentum in different coffee product categories. The cooperation with Starbucks will help transform and upgrade the Chinese coffee industry."

Jason Yu, general manager of the Kantar Worldpanel China, said the country's coffee market has massive potential, especially in instant coffee, capsule coffee and coffee stores.

"The competition among these coffee makers will further upgrade the Chinese coffee market and will offer consumers more options in coffee consumption," Yu said.