China’s Cotti Coffee makes US debut with Hawaii store

The value-focused coffee chain has opened a store at the Pearl Highlands shopping centre in Hawaii ahead of a planned US mainland launch within the next few years

The US marks Cotti Coffee’s fourth new market entry in the last four months | Photo credit: Cotti Coffee

US consumers can now get a first taste of fast-growing Chinese coffee chain Cotti Coffee after the value-focused operator opened at the Pearl Highlands shopping centre in Hawaii. 

 

Cotti Coffee is planning to open further stores on the island state within the next 12 months, including a second location in Honolulu’s Kaka‘ako district this Summer. The business is also planning a US mainland launch in the next few years, according to commercial real estate firm Colliers – which partnered with Cotti Coffee to secure the Pearl Highlands site. 

The coffee chain, which already operates three stores in Canada following its Toronto debut in September 2023, is the first major Chinese coffee-focused operator to launch in the US. 

Cotti Coffee, which operates more than 6,200 stores in China, is well-known at home for its heavy beverage discounting. The small-format operator is currently locked in a price war with market rival Luckin Coffee which has pushed the promotional cost of beverages in China to as low as 9.90 RMB ($1.37) per cup.   

The brand’s first US store is following suit, with $2.99 americanoa and $4.29 milk-based beverages priced $1.00 and $0.60 below the US market average and significantly lower than US branded coffee shhop market leaders Starbucks and Dunkin’, which retail 16oz americanos for $4.65 and $3.89 respectively. 

 

Cotti Coffee has been rapidly scaling its international footprint since launching in October 2022 and reached 7,000 stores globally in March 2024. The US marks a fourth new market entry in four months for the value-focused chain following first stores in Australia, the UAE and Qatar between February and April 2024.