Esquires Coffee House has opened its 19th and 20th stores in China this month, in the Yunnan province of Kunming and in Chongquing in mid-Western China.

There are now three stores in Kunming city, with the new stores delivering access to markets of 34 million people with 28 million of them in Chongquing.

Esquires, owned by NZ-listed Cooks Global Foods, has launched 10 stores in China in the past year.

Keith Jackson, Cooks Global Foods chairman, said that the stores offer Esquires a massive catchment area in China.

“The figures are quite astonishing. With 20 stores open in China, Esquires now has access to a population of some 60 million. We have more than doubled our presence in China since June and the pace doesn’t look to be abating.”

He said that there are 12 Esquires stores in Beijing, with plans for at least 25 in China by the end of 2014.

While the average urban Chinese resident drinks just five cups of coffee a year, compared with much higher rates in northern European countries, Jackson said that the company has created a successful niche by focusing on organic and fair trade coffee, tea, and chocolate.