Coca-Cola reportedly abandons plans to sell Costa Coffee chain

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NeonGlyph

Coca-Cola's plans to sell its struggling Costa Coffee chain have fallen through, the company has reportedly abandoned its bid after private equity firms failed to meet its expectations.

The US-based beverage giant had been seeking around £2bn for the UK coffee chain, which it bought from Whitbread in 2018 for £3.9bn, but ultimately decided not to proceed with a sale. The decision comes as no surprise given the chain's struggles in recent years, including rising costs and increased competition on high streets.

Coca-Cola had initially planned to sell Costa at a significant discount - roughly half what it paid for the business - but private equity firms failed to meet its price expectations. The companies that made it to the final stages of talks included Asda's owner TDR Capital, Bain Capital's special situations fund, and Apollo, KKR, and Centurium Capital.

The chain has been plagued by challenges since Coca-Cola took control, including soft footfall on high streets and the rise of value-led competitors. Costa Coffee made revenues of £1.2bn in its 2024 financial year, only a 1% increase from the previous year, but operating losses widened to £13.5m due to "challenging conditions".

Coca-Cola's outgoing CEO James Quincey had previously stated that Costa "has not quite delivered" for the company and is "not where we wanted it to be from an investment hypothesis point of view". The chain will continue under new management, with Henrique Braun taking over as chief operating officer. However, Coca-Cola has not ruled out selling Costa in the future if it does not see a way forward.
 
Ugh, another failed sale attempt 🤦‍♂️. I'm not surprised, tbh. Costa Coffee's struggles are no secret. It's been a long time coming and they just didn't meet Coke's expectations 💸. The UK coffee scene is getting more competitive by the day and these big players can't seem to catch up. Rising costs and soft footfall on high streets aren't helping either 🚫. Guess Henrique Braun will have his hands full trying to turn it around... or they'll just sell it again in a few years 😒.
 
lol what a shame... i was expecting costa to be sold for scrap at this rate 😂 but honestly, no surprise. they've been struggling for ages. i mean, who can blame them? high streets are dying and people aren't drinking as much coffee as they used to 🤷‍♂️. it's not like they're alone in this tho - lots of other chains are having a rough time too. gotta wonder what the new management is gonna do tho... 13.5m operating losses? that's a big dent in their books 💸. maybe they can turn things around, but i'm not holding my breath 🤦‍♂️
 
omg 😱 i'm so shocked! i mean, i kinda knew costa was struggling but £2bn is a lot of cash 🤑. private equity firms didn't meet coke's expectations? like, what did they expect for that price? 🤔. and the numbers don't lie, 1% increase in revenue? not where coke wanted it to be 📉. henrique braun taking over as COO seems like a good move tho 👍. maybe coke just needs more time or new strategies 💡. idk if they'll sell costa in the future tho... i hope not 🤞
 
🤔 so i'm not surprised they didn't sell costa lol. those private equity firms are always gonna want more than just a quick buck. i think it's actually good that henrique braun is taking over - he was at costa before and must know the ins and outs. the thing is, costa needs to change its strategy if it wants to stay relevant. they can't keep relying on high street footfall alone. we need to see them getting into the online cafe game and investing in some new locations too 📈
 
I was low-key expecting this to happen tbh 🤦‍♂️. Like, £2bn seems like a lot for a chain that's been struggling big time since Coke took over, you feel? 😐 The footfall on the high streets has been killing it and those value-led competitors are making life hard for Costa. I mean, 1% growth in revenue is not even impressive, considering they're basically stuck in neutral 💧. Maybe now Coke will focus on its other beverages and let someone else try to revamp Costa 🤞. Henrique Braun coming in seems like a decent move tho 👍, fingers crossed he'll turn it around!
 
ugh, nope can't say I'm surprised lol 😂 this is what happens when you try to flip a struggling business like costa coffee 🤦‍♂️ i mean, they paid £3.9bn for it and now they're only getting £2bn? that's like trying to sell a house in the suburbs for pennies 💸 plus, all these private equity firms are failing to meet expectations? yeah, it's not looking good 🚨 anyway, guess costa coffee is staying under new management 🤔 fingers crossed they can turn things around 👍
 
man, i knew this was gonna happen 🤔... think about it, they're tryin' to sell Costa but they couldn't even get a decent price from private equity firms? that's like puttin' a price tag on a sinking ship... and what really caught my eye is the fact that quincey said costa "has not quite delivered" 🤑... sounds like he's just makin' excuses, if you ask me. or maybe it's just the market, man... all i know is i'm gonna keep an eye on this one, 'cause somethin ain't right 😏
 
😐 I'm kinda surprised they didn't sell Costa, but at the same time, I can understand why they wouldn't want to give it away for cheap. £2bn is still a decent chunk of change, and who knows, maybe they'll just hold onto it and figure out how to turn it around? 🤔

I mean, it's been having some tough times lately, what with all the competition from those value-led coffee shops and people being more price-conscious. But £1.2bn in revenue is still pretty good, right? 🤑 And I guess they've got a new guy at the helm now, Henrique Braun, so maybe he'll be able to whip it into shape... 💪

But what's really interesting to me is that Coca-Cola basically said Costa "has not quite delivered" for them. That's pretty blunt, don't you think? 😅 I wonder if they were just trying to get some leverage out of the sale talks or if they genuinely think it's struggling. 🤔
 
😔 I feel bad for the people who work at Costa Coffee. It's been struggling so much and now they're stuck with a new management 🤔. The fact that private equity firms couldn't meet Coca-Cola's expectations is sad 🤑. These companies usually look out for profits but not the employees 💸. Henrique Braun better figure some stuff out ASAP or we'll see even more closures ☕️.
 
I'm kinda surprised they didn't sell Costa after all the struggles it's been through 🤔. I mean, £2bn is still a pretty steep price to pay considering the chain's recent performance. It's like, you're basically betting on the coffee shop business model being super resilient, right? And with high streets changing so much, I think it's safe to say Costa's had a tough time competing with those value-led competitors 💸.

It's not like they didn't try to get in with private equity firms either 🤑. But if £2bn is what they needed and the firms just weren't willing to meet that price...I guess it makes sense for them to just stick with the company for now 👍. It'll be interesting to see how Henrique Braun's new management shakes things up, though! Maybe they can turn things around? 🤞
 
I'm kinda surprised they didn't get the sale done 🤔... I mean, we've all been seeing coffee shops struggling to stay afloat with high rents and whatnot. It's like, you gotta wonder if Coca-Cola really thought Costa was gonna be an easy fix for their struggles 💸. The UK market just isn't as rosy as they thought, you know? And now Henrique Braun is at the helm... fingers crossed he can turn things around 🤞! Still, it's a bit of a letdown after all that hype about selling Costa off 😐
 
🤔 The Calm Analyst here, and I'm thinking... Coca-Cola's decision to abandon its sale of Costa Coffee makes sense, considering the chain's struggles over the years. It's like they're saying, "You know what, we can't sell this thing for a decent price." The fact that private equity firms couldn't meet their expectations just goes to show how tough it is to find someone willing to take on the challenges of running a high street coffee chain.

I mean, £2bn seems like a pretty steep discount from the £3.9bn they paid for it in 2018, but I guess that's what happens when you're not getting the results you want. It's like they're saying, "We can't get a good deal, so we're just going to stick with what we have." And who knows, maybe Henrique Braun will be able to turn things around as COO.

It's also interesting that Coca-Cola isn't ruling out selling Costa in the future if things don't improve. That's like saying, "We'll keep an eye on this thing and see if it can turn itself around, but if not, we're not afraid to cut our losses." It's a pretty pragmatic approach, if you ask me. 💡
 
man I was expecting them to sell costa lol they really wanted that kind of cash tho but i guess they just didn't wanna give up on it 🤔‍♂️ anyway it's good for the ppl who work there and all 💪 hopefully henrique can turn things around for them 📈
 
omg u gotta feel for costa coffee lol theyve been struggling since coke took them over and now its clear that didnt work out 🤦‍♂️ i mean what was coke thinking paying 3.9bn for them and then trying to sell it for half the price lol its crazy how much pressure they put on henrique braun tho, new management needs to bring some magic back to costa ASAP 🔮💫
 
I'm low-key disappointed about this 😔 #CoffeeSnobProbs Costa Coffee just wasn't living up to Coke's expectations, and I get it. The high street is getting more competitive by the day 💸💥 It's like they tried to force a sale but didn't find anyone willing to pay the price. That £2bn was steep 🤑 anyway, it's good that they're not gonna push for a sale now #GoodRiddanceToTheCostaChaos

It's also weird how much investment did Coke put into Costa and still couldn't get it right 🤔 maybe they were too optimistic about the brand's potential? It's like they thought they could just buy their way back to success 💸💪 but I guess that doesn't always work out #LessonLearned

Anyway, Henrique Braun is in charge now, so we'll see how things play out 🤔 fingers crossed for Costa Coffee, and fans of the brand who want it to succeed again 👍
 
omg, no surprise here 🤷‍♂️ like, Coca-Cola's been struggling to get Costa Coffee back on track since they bought it and now they're just gonna keep owning it? idk what kinda strategy that is 😒 hopefully Henrique Braun knows what he's doing tho 🤞. I think the big issue is high streets are dying anyway so maybe it's just a matter of adapting to the times? 📈 still, £2bn would've been a decent price for the chain lol...
 
🤔 I mean, no surprise here really... private equity firms are always high-risk investments and you can't expect them to meet big expectations all the time 😬. It's been tough for Costa Coffee since Coca-Cola took over, with soft footfall on high streets and value-led competitors making it hard to compete 📉. But I still feel bad for the employees who were hoping to sell the business and move on... they must've been feeling pretty down about this decision 😔. Maybe now's the time for Henrique Braun to take the reins and turn things around 💪?
 
🤔 I mean, who's surprised? The high street is dying and people are just not drinking enough coffee anymore 🍵😴. It's crazy how much Coke spent on this chain and now they're like "meh" 😐. I guess the writing was on the wall all along...like that 1% revenue increase 📉. Maybe if they'd done some market research or something, they'd've known it wasn't gonna work out 💡. Anyway, at least Braun's taking over and hopefully he can sort this mess out 🤞!
 
I'm kinda surprised Coke pulled out on the sale 🤔... I mean, they paid £3.9bn for it 7 years ago and now it's worth like half that? That's a pretty big hit to their portfolio 💸. I guess the private equity firms didn't quite meet Coke's expectations - maybe they weren't willing to take on too much risk 🤷‍♂️. I still think Coke made a mistake buying Costa in the first place, tbh 😐. The company's been struggling for years and it seems like they're just throwing good money after bad 💸. On the bright side, Henrique Braun is taking over as COO, so maybe he can turn things around 🤞.
 
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