If I were a gambling man and a coffee aficionado, I’d bet on one, six, 19 and 80 in next Saturday’s lotto draw.

Why you may ask?

The one, six and 19 represent June 1, 2019 – the date Starbucks opened its first outlet here. And the 80 because Malta is the 80th country the American company is now located in.

“As a global brand we need to ensure we come to a new country at the right time and in a humble and respectful way,” said Robert Lynch, Starbuck’s vice president of retail operations for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

“We are very thoughtful about where we want to go and the time we enter a market. Moreover, we need to understand what the customer in new markets wants,” explained Lynch. “And that takes time.”

Starbucks and Malta’s db Group partnered some time ago, according to Lynch, to learn and understand the market and to scout for the ideal location for their first coffee shop on the islands.

“Opening a first store for us is as critical as opening in a new country because we look for the right first site, and that’s why we are very proud of this location on the Valletta Waterfront,” said Lynch, adding: “We truly appreciate what matters most to the customer we will be serving. Customers love us for the drinks and coffees that we serve, but at the same time this experience we create comes back to our mission statement, which is to connect with the local neighbourhood we serve.”

Malta’s first Starbucks coffeehouse – located in Vault 15 on the Valletta Waterfront – was designed to mirror both the country’s culture and trading heritage. Its wood, marble and dark finishes contrast with the lighter limestone facade of the city’s iconic waterfront. The design is also reminiscent of Starbucks’ own mercantile roots in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, where the company began in 1971 with its first outlet, selling only whole-bean coffee. The Starbucks name, incidentally, was inspired by Herman Melville’s novel Moby Dick.

“Everything we’ve done in bringing Starbucks to Malta has been done with our customers at the forefront,” commented coffeehouse general manager Malcolm Saliba.

“While the experience will be consistent with the values and store atmosphere that Starbucks is known for, what customers in Malta will see is an environment created for them, reflecting the beauty of the islands’ dynamic culture.”

From left: Malcolm Saliba and Robert Lynch. Photo: Mark Zammit Cordina

Our mission statement is to connect with the neighbourhood we serve

As in its other 30,000 outlets worldwide Starbucks brings its local customers a vast menu that not only includes a wide range of coffees – from classic favourites like cafe latte to innovations such as a nitrogen-infused cold brew (that looks like a white coffee when poured, then turns black ‘just like Guinness’) – to light meals.

What’s more, the company claims there are more than 170,000 ways to customise its beverages – if you sampled one a day, it would take you 465 years and 44 days to go through the lot.

The base ingredient for each of these beverages is, of course, Arabica coffee of the finest quality. Since 2015 Starbucks has ensured that 99 per cent of its coffee is ethically sourced through its Coffee and Farmer Equity Practices programme, developed in association with environment NGO Conservation International.

The Seattle-based company is the largest coffee retailer to reach this milestone. It has also pledged to donate 100 million coffee trees to coffee farmers – so far 30 million have already been distributed.

On another social conscience front Starbucks is working to reduce waste and promote reusability.

By next year it plans to have phased out plastic straws globally and introduce a lightweight straw less lid. This could eliminate one billion straws a year in North America alone, claims the company.

Starbucks will also test recyclable and compostable cups in select cities worldwide in the next 12 months, and the Valletta Waterfront coffeehouse could well be one of them.

Meantime, an initiative that local customers can benefit from now is a 25-cent discount on beverages if they bring their own reusable mug. And plastic cutlery will only be offered on request.

Aside from its ethical considerations, Starbucks is a purveyor of coffee that has also developed a core belief it calls the ‘third place’.

The first two ‘places’ are one’s home and workplace.

“We created a new environment for people we call the third place, where one can come to chat and connect,” explained Lynch.

The concept of connecting people is a cornerstone of the Starbucks ethos. The intention is for the Valletta Waterfront coffeehouse to become the ‘third place’ of choice for its customers.

And if Valletta may be too far to connect, there will soon be a second Starbucks in Għadira. “We’re nearly there,” beamed Saliba, “and the opening will be announced soon”.

Starbucks Malta is operated by the db Group, which holds an exclusive licence for managing and developing the Starbucks brand on the islands.