Coffee Berry is the third branded Greek coffee chain to enter the Saudi market | Photo credit: Coffee Berry

Greece’s Coffee Berry has opened its first outlet in Saudi Arabia at the Hayat Mall in Riyadh. 
 

The 210-strong Athens-based coffee chain signed a franchise agreement to launch in Saudi Arabia in 2022 and announced plans to open at least 20 stores in the kingdom within a few years. 

Coffee Berry joins Starbucks, Tim Hortons, M&S Café and bakery café chain Paul at the shopping centre. 

Founded in 2003 as a wholesale coffee company, Coffee Berry opened its first coffee shop in 2016 in the fashionable Athens town of Glyfada. The coffee chain, which now has 125 stores across Greece, also began its international expansion in 2016 with an outlet in Cyprus, where it now operates 78 stores. 

Coffee Berry also entered Egypt in 2019 and currently operates seven stores across the North African country, primarily in the capital city Cairo. 

The Athens-based coffee chain said its debut in Saudi Arabia would prelude further expansion to new markets in Europe and the Middle East. 

Saudi Arabia’s 3,600-store branded coffee shop market is the largest in the Middle East, with World Coffee Portal research forecasting it will exceed 5,350 outlets by 2027. 

Coffee Berry is the third branded Greek coffee chain to enter the Saudi market after Mikel Coffee Company and Coffeebrands, which operate seven and three stores respectively.