On the sixth morning after its grand opening in Singapore on November 17, 2023, Canada’s favorite coffee shop, Tim Hortons^®, housed inside Vivo City Mall, the country’s largest shopping mall, was crowded with people longing for a taste of Canada. The coffee shop is furnished with wood tables and chairs, with maple-leaf motifs hanging from the ceiling. Along with a brewed coffee or latte, many customers were having a grilled sourdough sandwich; maple glazed chicken ham and cheese seems to be the top local favorite. Outside the store, there was a long line of people waiting to buy a box of donuts, another iconic item Tim Hortons has to offer.

In Southeast Asia—where GDP is steadily increasing, urbanization is accelerating, and young people constitute a significant proportion of the total population—coffee consumption is on the rise, and people are drinking more and more coffee outside of the home. According to Ipsos, an international market research firm, the coffee-shop market in Singapore is forecasted to increase by 3.1 percent (the compound annual growth rate between 2022 and 2027). The Indonesian market is expected to grow even more rapidly, by nearly 10 percent.

Already housing many local and international coffee chains, Singapore appears to be a very competitive market to venture into. Nevertheless, “It is an extremely exciting place for us,” says Vaibhav Punj, CEO of MGCA Cafe, which was created under the umbrella of MGCA as the master franchisee responsible for developing and operating the Tim Hortons^® business in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. He explains, “First, consumers in Singapore are open to experiencing new brands, newer concepts. Second, per capita income is very high, which means that people in Singapore can spend more money on discretionary products like latte and cappuccino. Third, per capita consumption of coffee in Singapore is among the highest in the world.” Punj adds that Singapore was chosen as “ground zero for Tim Hortons in Southeast Asia” because of its influence as a trendsetter over its neighboring markets, saying, “If the brand is established in Singapore first, that will help us as a springboard into other markets.”

In India, his home country, Punj contributed to the successful launch and expansion of Burger King^®, an American quick-service restaurant chain also owned by Restaurant Brands International (headquartered in Canada), the owner of Tim Hortons^®. He explains that Tim Hortons is positioned in Singapore as a “third place” coffee shop, creating a space for entertainment and indulgence in the community—distinctively different from the traditional Singaporean coffee culture, in which people quickly grab breakfast and a cup of kopi, a low-priced coffee using robusta beans roasted with sugar and other ingredients.

Everything that is needed at the coffee shop, from perishables and coffee machines to cups and packaging, is sourced by MGCA Cafe’s supply chain management team, which has created a network of suppliers from scratch. “Identifying those who could be our core suppliers was the key,” says Serene Low, director of the team. She recalls that it was a challenging task because the team needed to establish a supply chain that can ensure everything—product quality, stable supply, and business profitability. The team also tried to get as many suppliers within the region as possible so that shipping costs could be minimized. “By utilizing Marubeni’s network and expertise in trading, we were able to identify suppliers who are able to support our business,” Low says.