Publix Testing Kahwa Coffee Cafés at 3 Locations

Publix Super Markets is testing in-store cafés serving St. Petersburg Fla.-based Kahwa Coffee in three locations.

The first in-store Kahwa café locations are in Bradenton and Winter Garden, Fla., and Charlotte, N.C. (scheduled to open Saturday, July 21), a spokesman at Lakeland, Fla.-based Publix told Progressive Grocer.

According to a press release issued by Kahwa, the concept could appear in 130 stores across Publix’s southeastern footprint by the end of the year, but the Publix spokesman couldn't confirm that number.

The release also noted that the in-store cafés are "strategically" positioned toward the entrance of each location and feature freshly brewed Kahwa Coffee beverages, in addition to bags of the brand's signature blends and K-Cups for purchase. Further, Kahwa's new Cubano blend will be available at the Bradenton and Winter Garden cafés, as well as at stand-alone Kahwa Coffee locations in the surrounding Tampa Bay market.

“We are absolutely over the moon that Publix is working with a local Florida roaster,” said Kahwa owner Raphael Perrier, who founded the company with his wife, Sarah, in 2006. “Consumers like to enjoy coffee as they shop, and tasting the product is the best opportunity to create a lifelong customer and drive sales for Publix.”

In a separate initiative, Publix also offers in-store Starbucks at 23 locations in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. The grocer has 1,188 stores in seven southeastern states.

Bearing “the original name for coffee throughout Africa,” according to its website, Kahwa focuses on blends over single-origin coffees and operates 12 stand-alone locations in Florida.