Vietnam's largest coffee chain delivers on-site in 3 minutes, a stepping stone for IPO?

Highlands Coffee has just opened its first drive-thru store in Ho Chi Minh City, a move that shows the possibility of restarting its expansion strategy towards a planned initial public offering (IPO).

Mr. David Thai (right), founder and CEO of Highlands Coffee, and Mr. Mojtaba Akhbari, global chief operating officer of Highlands Coffee - Photo: HP

This model is not unfamiliar in Vietnam.

Besides expanding its scale and investing in production, could the launch of this new model be seen as Highlands Coffee's preparation to improve its operational capabilities and increase brand value before going public?

Speaking to Tuoi Tre Online , David Thai, founder and CEO of Highlands Coffee, said it was too early to discuss the IPO plan. However, he affirmed that both the new model and the roasting plant are part of Highlands' commitment to bringing the best quality products to Vietnamese customers and exporting them globally .

The drive-thru model is not new, as it has become a consumer habit in Vietnam, where motorbikes are the primary mode of transportation and stopping to buy takeaway coffee has become a part of people's daily lives.

Therefore, Highlands' deployment of stores based on this model is not simply about opening a new type of business, but can be seen as a continuation of its ongoing innovation in service delivery. This is a direction the brand has been pursuing for over a decade.

In 2013, Highlands experimented with a self-service model at some of its stores. At the time, this model was still quite unfamiliar, and David Thai called it "scary," because Vietnamese consumers were not used to ordering food at the counter and picking up their own drinks instead of being served at their tables.

Nevertheless, Highlands believes it is a pioneer, creating a trend. The reality has proven this, as what started as an unfamiliar model has gradually become a common practice, especially in large cities where many F&B chains have adopted similar methods to optimize operations and reduce personnel costs.

Along with the drive-thru store, a new coffee roasting plant will be inaugurated in April 2025.

According to David Thai, all of this is part of a commitment to "bring the highest quality Vietnamese coffee products to the world and bring the best of the world to Vietnam."

Coffee is deeply intertwined with culture.

Coffee is a globally popular product, the second most traded commodity after... oil. According to David Thai, what makes coffee unique is not just its commodity value, but the consumption culture associated with each country.

Highlands' drive-thru model is designed to serve both customers who sit down and those who drive their motorbikes or cars, with a service time of approximately 3 minutes. Customers can pay with cash or online methods, at prices comparable to other stores in the chain.

According to Mojtaba Akhbari, global chief operating officer of Highlands Coffee, the team had long had the idea to implement this model, aiming to "retain habits that people are already familiar with, but place them in a more modern structure."

Highlands Coffee is currently the largest coffee chain in Vietnam, with over 900 outlets nationwide and approximately 53 stores in the Philippines. The company aims to reach 1,000 stores this year.

According to Jollibee Foods Corporation's annual report, Highlands Coffee achieved earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of over VND 1 trillion in 2024, with estimated total chain revenue exceeding VND 4.6 trillion. David Thai previously stated that Highlands holds over 30% market share in the coffee chain segment in Vietnam and has the potential to expand its network to 9,000-10,000 stores in the future.

Vietnam is currently the world's largest producer of robusta coffee and ranks second globally in coffee exports, after Brazil.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment , in the first half of this year, coffee exports reached US$5.5 billion, a significant increase compared to US$2.7 billion in the same period last year. The Ministry forecasts that coffee exports for the whole year could reach US$7.5 billion, an increase of nearly 37% compared to 2024. The US continues to be an important market for Vietnam's processed coffee sector, especially instant coffee and specialty coffee.

HONG PHUC

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/chuoi-ca-phe-lon-nhat-viet-nam-giao-hang-tai-cho-trong-3-phut-buoc-dem-cho-ipo-20250701234758951.htm