Van Houtte facts for kids
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| Private | |
| Industry | Restaurants Retail Coffee Retail Beverages Entertainment |
| Founded | In 1919 as a Speciality grocery store in Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Founder | Albert-Louis Van Houtte |
| Headquarters | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Products | Whole Bean Coffee Made-to-order beverages Bottled beverages Baked Goods Merchandise |
| Services | Coffee |
| Owner | Keurig Dr Pepper |
Van Houtte Inc. is a company from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is famous for making, selling, and distributing coffee and other coffee-related items. Over time, Van Houtte has added more products like special teas, sandwiches, and salads. The company was started by a person named Albert-Louis Van Houtte.
Contents
The Story of Van Houtte
How It All Started
Albert-Louis Van Houtte was born in France in 1877. He moved to Canada in 1912. After the First World War, his business of importing horses became too difficult. So, he decided to try selling food instead.
In 1919, he opened a grocery store. He wanted to sell special food items. But he soon found that people really loved his roasted coffee. This is how Van Houtte became known for its coffee.
Growing the Business
Albert-Louis Van Houtte passed away in 1944. His family continued to run and grow the business, which was called Maison A.L. Van Houtte.
In 1980, the family business changed into a bigger company called A.L Van Houtte Inc.. It was led by Paul-André Guillotte and Benoît Beauregard. In 1987, the company started selling shares on the Montreal Stock Exchange. This meant that anyone could buy a part of the company.
On September 12, 2000, the company's name was made shorter to just Van Houtte Inc.
Van Houtte Today
By 2000, about 20% of Van Houtte's total sales came from the United States. Their products were sold in 28 different states.
Today, Van Houtte is a big international company. It provides coffee, coffee machines, and support to over 60,000 offices and workplaces. These places are located in the United States and Canada. The company says this is the largest system of its kind in North America.
Van Houtte also sells and supports coffee for many other places. These include cafeterias, grocery stores, convenience stores, restaurants, and hotels. Van Houtte also offers special coffee products that are fair-traded. This means the farmers who grow the coffee beans are paid fairly.
Van Houtte still sells coffee directly to people. They have a chain of cafés (coffee shops) mostly in Quebec. There are also two in Ontario (Ottawa). You can also buy Van Houtte coffee and other products from their website.
Changes in Ownership
In May 2007, a company from the U.S. called Littlejohn & Co. made a big deal. They bought Van Houtte for $600 million. Even though the ownership changed, Van Houtte's main office stayed in Montreal. The same management team continued to lead the company.
On September 14, 2010, Van Houtte Inc. agreed to be bought by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. This coffee company is based in Vermont. The deal was for Can $915 million and was completed on December 17, 2010.
Later, on August 29, 2011, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters sold Van Houtte's U.S. coffee service business (called Filterfresh) to Aramark for $145 million.
In November 2014, Keurig Green Mountain sold the Van Houtte cafés in Quebec. They were sold to a restaurant company called MTY Food Group. However, Keurig Green Mountain kept control of the Van Houtte brand, its image, and the business that sells coffee in large amounts to other companies.
Images for kids
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Albert-Louis Van Houtte and his first store in 1919.
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The entrance to a Van Houtte café at the Ottawa Central Bus Station.
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A Van Houtte delivery car, a 2000-04 Ford Focus wagon.
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A clearer photo of Mr. Van Houtte in Montreal.
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See also
- Second Cup
- List of coffeehouse chains
