Costa Coffee has reached a “major milestone” in its partnership with Sainsbury’s with the opening of its 50th supermarket café, as the pair unveil plans to expand to more stores in 2026.
This year alone, Costa and Sainsbury’s plan to open at least another 14 in-store cafés.
Since first collaborating in 2024, the partnership has created more than 400 jobs in local communities. It now represents a combined investment of almost £16m.
The 50th in-store cafe opened on 30 April at Sainsbury’s Leicester North superstore. Its menu features Costa’s full drinks range, alongside a selection of food including freshly baked pastries.
Alongside the store estate, Costa operates more than 1,500 on-the-go Express machines across Sainsbury’s stores and petrol stations.
“We’re incredibly proud to be celebrating the opening of our 50th Costa Coffee store within Sainsbury’s,” said Costa Coffee head of property Tom Falk. “This milestone is a testament to the strength of our partnership and our shared commitment to bringing great coffee experiences to communities across the UK.”
Sainsbury’s head of food to go and partnerships Richard Murrell added: “This milestone shows how popular the brand is with our customers, whether they are enjoying a Costa coffee in-store or picking up lunch on the go while shopping with us.
“We’re excited to be celebrating this achievement and look forward to building on our success as we continue opening more stores together in the coming months.”
It comes as Costa unveiled plans to expand its presence in more travel locations in March, opening 40 new drive-thru stores across the UK in 2026.
The coffee chain opened its first UK drive-thru store in 2011, with the format continuing to “play a key role” in the evolution of its retail estate, being the UK’s largest drive-thru coffee operator.
In total, Costa now operates more than 2,800 stores in the UK across high streets, retail parks, shopping centres, transport hubs and drive-thru locations.
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