Thailand, Indonesia, Regional · Brand & Creative Communications
ZUS Coffee: Launching a Malaysian Favourite in Thailand and Indonesia
ZUS Coffee, Malaysia's largest tech driven coffee chain, expanded into Thailand and Indonesia in 2026 with little brand awareness in two crowded coffee markets. Ruder Finn Era's Thailand team drove the local launch, the Indonesia team managed media and content publishers with KOL engagement, and the regional team extended the story through Nikkei Asia and Bernama, producing 423 pieces of coverage and 108 million page views.
The challenge
Thailand's coffee market is crowded and fiercely loyal. ZUS Coffee, a fast growing Malaysian chain, needed to arrive as a brand with a story and a community, not as another chain opening a store, and it needed both business and consumer audiences to notice in the same week.
Our solution
The Thailand team built a two day launch around a business media briefing, where the Thai general manager told the brand story and roadmap, and a consumer event with Gen Z celebrity partners, amplified across paid, earned and social channels so business and consumer audiences heard the same story in their own language.
The Indonesia team focused on media and content publishers while supervising KOL engagement, and the regional team secured coverage from Asia Pacific outlets including Nikkei Asia and Bernama. That repositioned the launch from a market entry announcement into a broader Southeast Asia growth story, strengthening credibility with business and industry stakeholders as well as coffee drinkers.
The results
- Client
- ZUS Coffee
- Services
- Integrated Brand and Creative, Strategy and Advisory, Influencer and KOL Marketing
- Sector
- Food and beverage
- Engagement
- Project
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