Espresso, Anyone?

Espresso lovers already know the name Illy. But Andrea Illy, 41, CEO of the coffeemaker, based in Trieste, Italy, and a grandson of its founder, wants the rest of the world to associate his family's name with the dark, silky brew too. Illy, a trained chemist, has high hopes that the Galleria Illy--a temporary café and showcase for the $265 million company's products, from coffee to espresso machines, that opened last month in Manhattan's trendy SoHo--will help him do that. He spoke with TIME's Dody Tsiantar about his plans.

TIME: Why open the Galleria Illy now?

Andrea Illy: Now is the perfect time. Awareness of coffee in America is at an all-time high. The purpose is to interact with the consumer and get them to know our brand. It's a new marketing approach. Here in America, espresso is often over-roasted, which is why it tastes bitter. We want to globalize espresso and teach consumers to drink it the preferred way.

TIME: It seems like a lot of trouble to open up this space and then close it in three months. Why not just open a retail café chain?

Illy: We think we can have a bigger impact this way. After three months, the novelty is gone. If it works, we will open more. We will have about 100 Illy Bar Concepts [espresso cafés] by the end of this year, mostly in Europe but also in Hong Kong, China, Japan and Australia. But we have no plans to open any in the U.S. We don't run these shops ourselves; we license them. We are industrialists, not retailers.

TIME: Illy makes a single coffee blend. Why?

Illy: That's what makes us unique. Our blend is a combination of nine ingredients sourced from 14 different countries. Each ingredient is chosen because it adds something specific to the flavor and the quality of our coffee. That's why our recipe is constant. If you offer too many choices, you mess everything up.

TIME: What do you think of Starbucks?

Illy: I have a lot of admiration for what they've been able to do: create a strong coffee culture in the United States. Gourmet-coffee consumption is up in the U.S., and this is a good thing for Illy. I have nothing negative to say about them.