Originally published Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 12:00 AM

Joint venture to help expand Tully's in Asia

Tully's Coffee in Seattle has formed a joint venture with Asia Food Culture Management in Singapore to develop its brand in Australia, New...

By Seattle Times business staff

Tully's Coffee in Seattle has formed a joint venture with Asia Food Culture Management in Singapore to develop its brand in Australia, New Zealand and Asian countries excluding Japan.

Kouta Matsuda, the executive who made Tully's a profitable enterprise in Japan, manages the Singapore company, which will contribute $6 million to the joint venture, according to a filing Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Tully's also agreed to pay $6 million to settle a legal dispute with UCC Ueshima Coffee, which had been licensed to open Tully's stores in Asia outside of Japan. The payment includes a $4 million promissory note.

Matsuda founded the company that made Tully's popular in Japan. In 2005, that company bought the license rights for Tully's there. Matsuda still owns a small portion of that company and started Koots Green Tea, which has stores in Japan and in Bellevue.

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