Starbucks selects Garden of Words for Central Europe

Scope of cooperation and markets

Garden of Words’ responsibilities include managing the brand’s press office, product and corporate communications, and running digital campaigns, with support from agency One2tribe. In July, the agency’s activities will focus on the Polish and Hungarian markets, with Czechia added in subsequent months.

Starbucks and AmRest in the region

Starbucks is the world’s largest and most recognizable coffeehouse chain. In Poland, Czechia, and Hungary, it is a market leader in coffee. The brand is managed on these markets by publicly traded AmRest, as part of a joint venture with Starbucks Coffee International. As of today, the company operates 69 locations, including 39 in Poland. AmRest is the largest independent restaurant chain operator in Central and Eastern Europe. Since 1993, it has consistently strengthened its position and expanded its portfolio with premium brands. Under the slogan “Everything is possible!”, AmRest manages market leaders such as Starbucks, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Burger King.

The Starbucks brand is built on three pillars: passion for coffee, fostering human connections, and delivering exceptional customer service. Starbucks stores aim to become gathering places people return to—not only for great coffee, but also to experience the unique Starbucks atmosphere (Starbucks experience).

Tender criteria and agency selection

The tender resulted from a strategic decision to harmonize the brand’s communication and PR activities across all three markets. Agencies from countries where AmRest operates participated in the process. Garden of Words successfully advanced through all stages of the competition, outperforming its rivals.

The most important criterion in selecting the winning bid was understanding the brand, the ability to build relationships with consumers, and a holistic approach to PR and digital communication in our Central European markets – says Iwona Sarachman, PR Director for Central Europe. – This was a major challenge for all tender participants. Garden of Words best met our expectations. The agency’s proposal demonstrated clear vision for a cohesive brand strategy and the capacity to implement it across all key areas. This was decisive in our selection – she adds.

Future plans for Garden of Words

Partnering with Starbucks aligns perfectly with Garden of Words’ consistent growth strategy, which focuses on building its own network of partners across Europe. The agency currently employs nearly 40 people and continues to expand its team. In the past year alone, it managed communication activities for 23 projects across clients in over 11 countries.

Starbucks selects Garden of Words for communication management

We continuously expand our communication expertise. The combination of experience and a tailored approach to each client has earned us the trust of many key players in the market. I am very pleased that now, the international brand Starbucks joins our clients – says Katarzyna Pawlikowska, CEO of Garden of Words.

The agency also benefits from AmRest’s recent decision to acquire the Starbucks business in Romania and Bulgaria, finalized at the end of June this year, which will expand the agency’s scope to cover additional European markets.

We are delighted to begin collaboration with Garden of Words, whose creativity and unique approach to communicating with diverse consumer groups will strengthen our relationship-building with the Starbucks community across our markets – says Iwona Sarachman.

During the tender, the team was led by Iwona Michalczyk, Managing Director of Garden of Words. Communications for Starbucks in Poland will be coordinated by Edyta Szyszło, Account Manager, and for international markets by Maja Głuśniewska, Account Manager.

Summary

Garden of Words won the tender to manage Starbucks’ communications in Central Europe. The agency is responsible for the press office, product and corporate communications, and digital campaigns, supported by One2tribe. Activities will cover Poland and Hungary in July, followed by Czechia.

The brand in these markets is managed by publicly traded AmRest in a joint venture with Starbucks Coffee International, operating a total of 69 locations. Key selection criteria were brand understanding and a holistic communication approach. The tender team was led by Iwona Michalczyk, with collaboration coordinated by Edyta Szyszło and Maja Głuśniewska.