Juan Valdez, a popular coffee growers brand in Colombia named after a fictional farmer, has launched a coffee shop in Miami on Monday.

The Colombian coffee brand said it hopes to join the competition of high-end coffee-makers market in the U.S.

Procafecol, the company that oversees the Juan Valdez brand, represents about half a million of Colombia's coffee producers.

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It plans to open 60 branches in Florida alone over the course of five years and also plans to have ties with Hispanic coffee makers, much like those in Texas and southern California.

The company is joining an USD18 billion high-end coffee market in the U.S. 

They used to have stores in New York City, Philadelphia and Seattle, but the shops were shut down in 2010.

Juan Valdez Café is reported to offer a variety of Colombian coffees from the country's growing regions.

They will also have a selection of pastries like empanadas, pan de bono and a cheese-filled bread.

"This is becoming like the wine industry where you're pairing food, and consumers here in the U.S. are so willing to learn about the coffee, how it's roasted, and the origin," said Juan Valdez's president of international business, Alejandra Londoño.

Juan Valdez has 280 stores in about 13 countries, mostly in Latin America. It is competing with the coffee giant, Starbucks Corp. which has opened a store in Columbia last week.

Meanwhile, coffee growers of Colombia struggle to meet the production quota because of the heavy rains during the past few years.

The country's coffee production experienced a drastic flop in 2008. The coffee community lost most of its U.S. dealers who were forced to find quality coffee beans elsewhere.

TagsColumbia, juan valdez, coffee maker, Miami, Starbucks