| Founded | 1979 (USA); 1996 (Australia) |
|---|---|
| Founder(s) | Ed & Gloria Jean Kvetko (USA) |
| Headquarters | Worldwide |
| Number of locations | 1000 in more than 39 countries |
| Products | Coffee |
| Owner(s) | Nabi Saleh |
| Website | http://www.gloriajeanscoffees.com |
Gloria Jean's Coffees is an Australian owned global specialty coffee company that has opened more than 1,000 coffee houses across 39 markets worldwide, including over 460 in Australia.
Contents |
Gloria Jean's Coffees was founded by Gloria Jean Kvetko in 1979 in Chicago, USA. Gloria Jean's Coffees began as a small coffee and gift shop in Chicago USA which now has over 110 locations throughout the U.S. In 1995, Nabi Saleh and Peter Irvine,[1]former Managing Director of advertising agency DDB Needham, visited the United States to sample the Gloria Jean's Coffees brand. Saleh and Irvine identified the opportunity for this brand in Australia, purchasing the international licensing rights from Diedrich Coffee, Inc.
Saleh and Irvine established Jireh International Pty Ltd (trading as Gloria Jeans Coffees[2]), the company that holds the right to franchise Gloria Jean's Coffees in Australia, and purchased the rights to the Gloria Jean's Coffees brand for all other countries from Diedrich Coffee, Inc, with the exceptions of the USA and Puerto Rico. In late 1996, Jireh International Pty Ltd opened the first Gloria Jean's coffee house in Miranda, Sydney, and two weeks later another in Eastgardens, also in Sydney. These coffee house were set up to test the concept in the Australian market.
In early 1998, Gloria Jean's Coffees Australia franchised its first store and within six years had opened 185 stores owned and operated by more than 100 franchisees. In 2003, a franchise opened in Darwin; this meant that the brand was now established in every Australian state, the ACT and NT.[3] Jireh International Pty Ltd formed a North American Affiliate, Praise International North America, Inc.[4] and as of June 14, 2009, which also operates It's A Grind Coffee House in 13 states[5]. the North American rights were sold by Diedrich Coffee to the American Affiliate of the Australian holding company.[6].
Coffee houses serve and sell a range of handcrafted espresso coffee drinks, signature cold drinks, blended and estate whole bean coffees and speciality teas along with pastries and coffee accessories.
Gloria Jean’s Coffees recently purchased through auction an allocation of the whole coffee bean that came fifth in Brazil’s Cup of Excellence awards, the Lot#5 Norival Favaro – Sao Marcos, which will be available at all Gloria Jean’s coffee houses in Australia in August 2011.
The Gloria Jean's Coffees business model is a franchising system similar to many fast-food chains. Franchise owners have to pay franchise fees and royalties on their sales as well as operating costs.[7] The organization's board consists of chairman Nabi Selah, and directors John Dwight, Peter Irvine and Andrew Tyndale.
Gloria Jean’s Coffees is a successful franchise system which has been recognized as one of the world’s best. It receives hundreds of franchise enquiries each month. Since first entering the Australian market in 1996, the company has opened more than 500 coffee houses, operating in every state and territory of the country. Gloria Jean’s Coffees is now Australia’s largest and most recognised specialty coffee retailer.
Gloria Jean’s Coffees is one of the top 30 fastest growing franchises in Australia and is also listed as one of Australia’s top 1,000 companies and top 500 Private Companies (Source: BRW 2007/2008).
In Australia, Gloria Jean’s Coffees is one of the longest supporters of Jeans for Genes and since 2002 has raised more than $650,000 for the cause. Gloria Jean’s Coffees also supports a range of other charities including the Salvation Army. All franchise partners are also encouraged to support other local charities or causes in their local communities.
In mid-2009, Gloria Jean's Coffees International formed a charity, the GJCI "With Heart" Foundation, to support various international charities, including Compassion and Opportunity International.[8] Through their partnership with Compassion, Gloria Jean’s Coffees supports more than 300 children from the coffee producing regions of Brazil providing them with improved health and education opportunities.
With Heart was formed, following the cessation of a prior partnership of what was a Hillsong-related initiative Mercy Ministries, a pro-life charity. Nabi Saleh and Peter Irvine are prominent, active members of Hillsong Church.[9]Peter Irvine was executive director of Mercy Ministries until March 2008.[10][11][12] "Gloria Jean's Coffees chose to support Mercy Ministries because there is a need in Australia for a dedicated charity that helps women with these difficult issues," said Peter Irvine, Co-Founder of Gloria Jean's Coffees.[13] In December 2009, Irvine and other former directors were found by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to have engaged in false and misleading conduct and ordered to pay $1,050 to each of the 110 young women who took part in their programs.[14] In mid 2009, Gloria Jean's severed their sponsorship of Mercy Ministries and Hillsong publicly severed all links to Mercy Ministries in October 2009.[15]There are no financial or legal ties between Gloria Jean’s Coffees and Hillsong Church. Gloria Jean’s Coffees supports the work of Hillsong by providing mobile coffee carts and coffee supplies to assist the church in its fundraising activities.
Gloria Jean’s Coffees also works in partnership with not-for-profit organisation, the Rainforest Alliance, to protect ecosystems and support the people and wildlife that depend on them. Gloria Jean’s Coffees was recognised in May 2008 with the Rainforest Alliance Corporate Green Globe Award, which recognised the company’s work in supporting global sustainability in agriculture, forestry and tourism. Gloria Jean’s Coffees was the first Australian company to receive the award. In the 2008-2009 financial year, its signature espresso blend became Rainforest Alliance Certified and is now available throughout its international network of coffee houses. The company also previously launched a Rainforest Alliance Certified Single Origin Nicaraguan whole bean coffee that won a Silver Medal at the 2007 Sydney Royal Easter Show.
Gloria Jean's has recently been under fire in the media for the sugar and fat content of some of their products. Analysis of a regular 'Gloria Jeans Mocha Chiller Coco Loco' revealed it contained 95.5 g of sugar, which is 106 percent of an adult's recommended daily intake. They have also been criticized for failing to provide nutritional information to their customers.[16]
In April 2010, Gloria Jean's parent company, Jireh International, was accused of breaking a joint venture agreement with a small US-based coffee supplier, Western Export Services. Western is suing Jireh for $56 million in unpaid commissions and damages. Jireh has launched a cross-claim, saying the 1996 agreement was invalid.[17]
| Year | Nominated work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Australian Franchisor of the Year | PricewaterhouseCoopers Excellence in Franchising Awards | Won |
| 2006 | Australian 2006 Franchise Export Award of the Year[18] | PricewaterhouseCoopers Excellence in Franchising Awards | Won |
| 2007 | Food Franchisor of the Year 2007[19] | PricewaterhouseCoopers Excellence in Franchising Awards | Won |
| 2007 | Western Sydney Exporter Award[20] | 2007 Premier’s NSW Export Awards | Won |
| 2009 | Western Sydney Exporter Award 2009 | Premier’s NSW Export Awards | Won |
| 2009 | International Franchisor of the Year 2009 | MYOB Excellence in Franchising Awards | Won |
| 2010 | Excellence in Marketing Award[21] | National Franchise Council Awards 2010 | Won |
| 2010 | International Franchising Award – Merit award[22] | National Franchise Council Awards 2010 | Won |
| 2010 | Retail Leadership Award 2010 | International Asia Retail Congress | Won |
| 2011 | 2011 Australian Business Awards for Marketing Excellence | Won | |
| 2011 | Community Contribution 2011 | Australian Business Awards | Won |