Costa Coffee facts for kids
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Trade name
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Costa Coffee |
|---|---|
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Formerly
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C. B. Costa Bros. Coffee Co. Limited (1976–1997) |
| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Coffee shop |
| Founded |
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| Founder | Sergio Costa |
| Headquarters | Loudwater, Buckinghamshire, England |
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Number of locations
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 3,883 (2018) |
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Area served
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Worldwide |
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Key people
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Philippe Schaillee (CEO) |
| Products |
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| Revenue | £1.168 billion (2016) |
| £153 million (2016) |
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| Parent | The Coca-Cola Company |
Costa Coffee is a very popular British coffeehouse chain. Its main office is in Loudwater, Buckinghamshire, England.
The company was started in London in 1971 by Sergio Costa. At first, it sold roasted coffee beans to other businesses. Later, it grew into a huge chain of coffee shops. In 2019, The Coca-Cola Company bought Costa Coffee. Today, Costa Coffee has thousands of stores in many countries. It is the second largest coffee shop chain in the world. It is also the biggest in the UK.
Contents
History of Costa Coffee
Sergio Costa started his coffee business in London in 1971. His family had moved to England from Italy in the 1950s. At first, he roasted coffee beans to sell to restaurants and cafes.
In 1981, Costa Coffee opened its first coffee shop in London. By 1995, there were 41 Costa Coffee shops in the UK. That year, a large British company called Whitbread bought Costa Coffee.
Costa Coffee kept growing. In 2009, it opened its 1,000th store in Cardiff. It also bought a Polish coffee chain called Coffeeheaven. This added 79 more stores in Europe.
In 2018, Whitbread decided to sell Costa Coffee. On January 3, 2019, The Coca-Cola Company bought Costa Coffee for $4.9 billion.
In March 2020, many Costa Coffee shops in the UK closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Later, some reopened for takeaway or drive-through orders. In 2022, Costa Coffee stopped sponsoring the Costa Book Awards. This was an important book award that Whitbread had started many years before.
What Costa Coffee Sells
Costa Coffee shops sell many different things. They offer hot and cold drinks, like coffee and tea. You can also buy sandwiches, cakes, pastries, and other snacks. In 2020, they even made special Christmas drinks with famous chocolate brands.
Costa Coffee roasts its own coffee beans. In 2017, they moved their roasting factory to Basildon, Essex. This new factory can roast a lot more coffee than before.
Did you know that Costa Coffee has a special coffee taster named Gennaro Pelliccia? His tongue is so important for tasting coffee that it was insured for £10 million! In 2020, Costa Coffee also started selling canned coffee and iced coffee drinks.
How Costa Coffee Works
Running the Shops
In 2019, there were some news reports about how some Costa Coffee employees were paid. Costa Coffee said that its franchise stores (shops owned by other businesses) had different rules. They also said that some staff contracts allowed for certain money deductions.
Later, more reports came out saying that some workers felt they were not treated fairly. These reports mentioned claims about not being paid for sick days or holidays. Costa Coffee said they would look into these claims.
Where to Find Costa Coffee
As of October 2019, Costa Coffee had over 2,400 shops in the United Kingdom. They also had more than 1,400 stores in 32 other countries. The first Costa store outside the UK opened in the United Arab Emirates in 1999. In 2017, this store even started delivering coffee using drones!
Costa Coffee's main office is in Loudwater, Buckinghamshire, UK. Their coffee roasting factory is in Basildon, Essex.
Costa Express Machines
Costa Express machines are like vending machines that make fresh coffee. These machines are found in many places, such as hospitals, universities, and train stations. In some countries, like Denmark and the UK, you can find Costa Express machines in petrol stations.
In 2023, a Costa Express van had a special artwork for Pride Month. It showed a trans man with top surgery scars. Costa Coffee said the art was meant to show and celebrate that everyone is welcome.
Costa Coffee Around the World
As of January 2022, Costa Coffee had 3,884 locations in 38 countries across four continents.
| Country | No. of locations |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom |
2,467 |
 China |
459 |
 United Arab Emirates |
150 |
 Poland |
147 |
 Ireland |
114 |
 Kuwait |
95 |
 Czech Republic |
58 |
 India |
57 |
 Saudi Arabia |
56 |
 Egypt |
44 |
 Russia |
36 |
 Spain |
27 |
 Cyprus |
24 |
 Bahrain |
23 |
 Oman |
22 |
 Bulgaria |
21 |
 Philippines |
16 |
 Kazakhstan |
12 |
 Malta |
12 |
 Latvia |
11 |
 France |
8 |
 Croatia |
7 |
 Malaysia |
7 |
 Qatar |
7 |
 South Africa |
6 |
 United States |
6 |
 Portugal |
5 |
 Turkey |
5 |
 Azerbaijan |
4 |
 Cambodia |
4 |
 Jordan |
4 |
 Pakistan |
4 |
 Germany |
3 |
 Japan |
3 |
 Morocco |
3 |
 Austria |
2 |
 Georgia |
2 |
 Greece |
1 |
 Hungary |
1 |
 Indonesia |
1 |
 Italy |
1 |
 Mexico |
1 |
 Norway |
1 |
 Uzbekistan |
1 |
 Vietnam |
1 |
See also
In Spanish: Costa Coffee para niños
- List of coffeehouse chains
