Starbucks is exploring a possible sale of its operations in the UK as it faces rising costs and competition from new entrants.
It is understood that the world’s largest coffee chain has asked its adviser, Houlihan Lokey, to write interest in its business in the UK, which oversees more than 1,000 coffee shops and employs 4,000 people. Of these, about 300 stores are operated by Starbucks, and the rest are owned and operated by franchisees who pay royalties to the parent company.
Starbucks faces growing competition from rivals such as Pret A Manger, Tim Hortons and Costa along with thousands of independent operators. There are over 25,000 coffee shops in the UK, which have sprung up on every major street and increasingly in car parks and outside the city.