| Rokiah Mahmud |
COFFEE lovers of Brunei who are seeking the experience of real Italian coffee can now drop by the Segafredo Espresso Café, which officially opened its doors for business in the Sultanate yesterday.
The café, located in the same building as Hua Ho Tanjung Bunut, is the first café to serve 100 per cent Halal products and is the first Italian coffee shop with worldwide Halal recognition.
When asked why Halal recognition was important for Segafredo, the CEO of Segafredo Zanetti Espresso Worldwide Limited, Pascal Héritier explained to the Bulletin that since the majority of people in Brunei are Muslims, people will have the opportunity to appreciate the coffee chain that respects not only tradition, but also delivers high quality Halal products.
“We also hope that coffee lovers in the Sultanate – who are considered as one of the highest consumers of coffee with a per capita coffee consumption rate of more than 4kgs per year compared to Japan around 3kgs, South Korea more than 2kgs while China only few grammes – enjoy a perfect espresso, cappuccino or the other products that we serve here at the perfection of our Segafredo Espresso Cafe,” he said.
“With our constant drive in providing excellence in the quality of our product and efficient service, a friendly atmosphere is also one of the important factors that could attract more consumers to the café.”
Photo shows the Minister of Home Affairs, Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Haji Awang Abu Bakar bin Haji Apong and his spouse, Datin Paduka Hajah Jahrah binti Haji Mohammad, during a ribbon cutting ceremony
The CEO of Segafredo Zanetti Espresso Worldwide Ltd Pascal Héritier delivering his speech
The Minister of Home Affairs, Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Haji Awang Abu Bakar bin Haji Apong and his spouse, Datin Paduka Hajah Jahrah binti Haji Mohammad in a group photo with members and employees of Segafredo Espresso. – PHOTOS: ROKIAH MAHMUD
The official launching ceremony of Segafredo Espresso Cafe was marked with a ribbon cutting ceremony by the Minister of Home Affairs, Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Haji Awang Abu Bakar bin Haji Apong and his spouse, Datin Paduka Hajah Jahrah binti Haji Mohammad.
Also joining the ribbon cutting were the CEO of Segafredo Zanetti Espresso Worldwide Ltd Pascal Héritier, President for the Asia Coffee Shop Development and in charge of the Japan subsidiary Toshiro Brian Mori, CEO of Boncafe in Singapore Joe Mohan, and the Managing Director of Segafredo Espresso Cafe Brunei Francis Tee.
With the main goal to serve real Italian Coffee experience, Segafredo has placed their coffee shops in roughly 50 countries with more than 330 cafés worldwide.
In a dialogue with the Minister of Home Affairs, when asked for his view on the newly opened international brand coffee shop in the Sultanate, he expressed that not only does it carries their brand name; Segafredo Brunei’s employees are 90 per cent local.
“This is a very good opportunity for the locals to not only earn an income for their hard work, but also at the same time to learn skills and techniques on how to make excellent tasting coffee. Once they earn these skills, they may expand their skills to other Segafredo chains either in Asia or worldwide.”
“In their efforts to attract locals to enjoy real Italian coffee, Segafredo also became a pioneer in obtaining the Brunei Halal certification which is still in the process of approval. This is a good move and can match the competition of other coffee brands,” the minister added.
Segafredo Espresso Cafe opens from 7.45am until 11.45pm except on Friday when they close from 12pm to 2pm.
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