One late afternoon in 2009, the madness began at Think Coffee's Mercer Street location in New York City. With virtually no warning, several bizarrely dressed South Korean men entered with a camera crew following. In broken English, they did their bestto order doctored-up lattes. They took a few sips, made some sour faces and then headed out the door, leaving baristas and regulars scratching their heads. The stunt was part of a popular South Korean TV show called "Infinite Challenge," and once the episode aired, life on Mercer Street changed. Soon, buses full of South Korean tourists would stop at the shop and dozens of travelers would order the same drinks that were featured on television. Not long after, a Seoul based company contacted Think's management looking to license the brand back in Asia. After negotiations over coffee quality and training stipulations, Think Korea wasted little time making its debut in the South Korean capital. "They took our plans, leased a space, and in two and a halfweeks had a Think Coffee that looked like they had taken a picture of one of our stores and made a sculpture out of it," says Think's director of coffee, Matt Fury, There are now three Think Korea locations, all of them featuring the third-wave, specialty feel of the New York store that captivated South Korean viewers.
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