Starbucks headed for Russia

SEATTLE, Aug. 30 (UPI) -- Starbucks will have plenty of U.S. competition when it opens its first coffee shop in Russia next month.

Russia's biggest cities boast hundreds of Western-style restaurants, including many coffee houses, but this will be a first for Starbucks, currently doing business in 39 countries, The Seattle Times said Thursday.

The mall near Moscow where Starbucks plans to open its first shop has five other cafes, including the popular Russian chains Shokoladnitsa and Coffee House, the Times said. Some sell sushi and alcoholic beverages.

Starbucks is late to Russia partly because of a long-running trademark dispute with a Moscow lawyer, the company said. The Seattle-based chain entered the Chinese market eight years ago and has shops in Indonesia, Brazil, Japan and the Philippines, among others.