The Coca-Cola Company is brewing up a sale of Costa, Britain’s biggest high street coffee chain, more than six years after acquiring the business in a move aimed at helping it reduce its reliance on sugary soft drinks.
Sky News in an exclusive report revealed that Coca-Cola is working with bankers to hold exploratory talks about a sale of Costa.
Initial talks have already been held with a small number of potential bidders, including private equity firms, City sources said on Saturday.
Lazard, the investment bank, is understood to have been engaged by Coca-Cola to review options for the business and gauge interest from prospective buyers.
Indicative offers are said to be due in the early part of the autumn, although one source cautioned that Coca-Cola could yet decide not to proceed with a sale.
Costa trades from more than 2,000 stores in the UK, and well over 3,000 globally, according to the latest available figures.
It has been reported to have a global workforce numbering 35,000, although Coca-Cola did not respond to several attempts to establish the precise number of outlets currently in operation, or its employee numbers.
