The well-known Canadian coffee and donut chain Tim Hortons’ store count has more than doubled in China over the last year, reports Caixin. TH International Ltd, otherwise known as Tims China, is expanding at a pace that if sustained would outpace the initial trajectory of Starbucks.
Tims China said it opened its 300th store in the world’s most populous country. The more than two-fold jump—it had 137 outlets at the beginning of 2021—underscores the coffee chain’s big bet on China despite recurring flare-ups of Covid-19 that have curtailed consumer demand and triggered curbs on movement.
The rapid expansion is a precursor to taking the Chinese operations public through a merger of Tims China with the blank-check company Silver Crest Acquisition Corp. The deal is likely to close in the first quarter of 2022, said Peter Yu, chairman of Tims China.
This is a slight delay from the original timeline announced in August, when officials said the deal that would provide capital for expansion would close by the end of 2021. Tims China still plans to expand the number of stores by up to 800% by 2026.
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