Starbucks’ Indonesia operator sees sales boost from spending

Bloomberg

PT Mitra Adiperkasa, the Indonesian operator of global brands including Starbucks, Zara as well as Marks & Spencer, is predicting that a recovery in consumer spending will sustain its highest revenue growth in three years.
The retailer forecasts a revenue increase of 15 percent for a second year as consumers splurge more on Inditex SA’s Zara-branded clothes and Tumi Holdings Inc.’s suitcases.
The company will add 200 new stores this year, including 60 Starbucks Corp. outlets, Corporate Secretary Fetty Kwartati said.
The bullish outlook from Indonesia’s biggest lifestyle store operator mirrors official forecast of a revival in private consumption and investment supporting economic growth in the world’s fourth-most populous country. Mitra Adiperkasa is betting that demand for Starbucks beverages will grow among the fast-swelling ranks of middle-class and affluent Indonesians, just as it has in neighboring Philippines and Thailand.
“We are confident about the potential of Starbucks in Indonesia over the next five to 10 years and that’s why we are accelerating the expansion,” Kwartati said. “We are more optimistic about 2018 as we expect a turnaround in the macroeconomic conditions.” Consumer confidence remains near record high despite falling for two months in a row. The trillion dollar economy is forecast to expand 5.4 percent this year, the quickest pace of growth since 2013, according to the Finance Ministry.
Mitra Adiperkasa operates Indonesia’s 322 Starbucks outlets through its unit PT MAP Boga Adiperkasa Utama and plans to add 60 stores every year for the next three years, Kwartati said.