Starbucks has announced plans to open 30 new stores in the UK by September 2010, following an "exceptionally busy Christ-mas period".

The new stores, which will be a mixture of company-owned and franchised outlets, are planned to open by the end of Starbucks’ fiscal year in September. The chain has also opened four concessions in New Look clothing stores, with a fifth planned to open in February, following the closure of its 36 Starbucks concessions in Borders, which went into administration before Christmas.

A spokesperson for Starbucks told British Baker that Starbucks had been looking at which businesses took over the leases from Borders, to see if Starbucks’ concessions could re-open within them "and New Look was one of them".

Christmas sales helped the coffee chain record its sixth straight month of like-for-like growth in the UK. Comparative store sales rose by 3.9% in the first quarter to 27 December 2009, with sales in December alone up 6%.

Starbucks UK reported strong sales for its Christmas drinks, with 20% more Gingerbread and Toffee Nut Lattes sold than in 2008. The coffee chain noted that average customer spend was also on the increase.

Starbucks Corporation’s total net revenue was up 4% to $2.7bn