Italian-based coffee chain Café Barbera has announced its entry into Saudi Arabia (KSA) by partnering with Big Apple Sweets, a United Arab Emirates-based foodservice operator.

The partners are set to launch ten new outlets across the region in the year to February 2025.

The first is scheduled to open its doors in Riyadh in March 2024.

The coffee house chain announced its plan at the Gulfood 2024 event.

Café Barbera founder and CEO Enrico Barbera said: “Gulfood serves as the perfect platform to announce our venture into KSA. We are delighted to introduce Café Barbera's rich heritage to Riyadh, offering a true Italian coffee experience that will resonate with the local community.”

Big Apple Sweets CEO Eisa Adam Ibrahim said: “We are honoured to take our partnership further, to take Café Barbera in bringing their unique Italian coffee culture to the KSA. Their dedication to quality and tradition perfectly aligns with our values, and we are confident that our offerings will be embraced by the Saudi market.”

In addition to its expansion in Saudi Arabia, Café Barbera has also extended its reach to Greece by opening its first store in Athens in November 2023.

The new location not only represents the brand's fifth European market but also introduces the brand's first mini-store concept in Europe.

Café Barbera started as a coffee roaster in 1870. In 2004 it launched its first franchised coffee shop in Dubai.

It runs 40 locations in 18 markets, including eight in the UAE and others in Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt and Jordan.