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Venon Tian, co-founder and chief operating officer of ZUS Coffee (portrait in image), is confident the Malaysian startup, which has opened outlets in the Philippines, will soon expand to Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia. © Illustration by Yoshiko Kawano

Malaysia's ZUS Coffee cashes in as Gen Z drives consumer boom

Startup with regional ambitions aims to be the 'AirAsia of coffee'

KUALA LUMPUR -- No two coffee drinkers are likely to agree on the recipe to make a perfect cup. But anyone looking to brew a successful consumer sector business in Southeast Asia would do well to study ZUS Coffee, the Malaysian startup that has grown from nothing in 2019 to a profitable enterprise with more than 600 outlets in two countries and ambitions to expand significantly.

Its secret is a combination of high operational consistency, understanding its target market's aspirations, lifestyle and spending power, and a slice of luck.

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