Coca-Cola has called in restructuring advisers at Costa Coffee following an aborted sale attempt of the coffee chain, The Sunday Times has reported.
It is understood that consultancy firm AlixPartners is conducting an operational review of the Costa business, while Alvarez & Marsal is advising on finances.
Coca-Cola abandoned plans to sell the coffee chain, which operates around 2,700 shops across the UK, in January, after bids for the business failed to meet Costa’s £2bn price mark.
At £2bn, a sale would have netted Coca-Cola approximately half of the £3.9bn it paid to buy Costa from Premier Inn owner Whitbread in 2018.
It was first reported that the soft drinks giant was exploring a potential sale in August 2025. At the time, Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey said Costa had “not quite delivered” and was “not where we wanted it to be from an investment hypothesis point of view”.
Coca-Cola reported a 3% decline in coffee sales in 2024, primarily due to the performance of Costa in the UK.
Costa Coffee’s losses more than doubled in the year to 31 December 2024 as a result of slow footfall and cheaper competition. Operating losses widened from £5.8m to £13.5m, despite revenue rising 1% to £1.2bn.
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