EU – Baltic States, Latvia, Markets and Companies

Whitbread management announced last week that talks with Coffeeheaven International have moved ahead significantly. The value of the prospective deal is estimated at GBP 32 million, writes Nozare.lv/LETA.

The takeover deal would allow further business expansion for Whitbread. The company aims to increase the number of its outlets to 2,000 in 2010-2011.

The UK-registered Coffeeheaven International operates 92 cafes in Central Europe. The company's core business activity and headquarters are in Poland, where the chain has 62 cafes. It also has 15 cafes in the Czech Republic, seven in Latvia, and four in Bulgaria and Hungary each.

Coffeeheaven International entered Latvia in 2005, by purchasing the local coffee shop chain "Coffee Nation", founded in 2001.

Ludmila Kropivieca, member of "Coffee Nation" board, said that she had no information about the sale of the parent company. "I am surprises to hear that, because our owners are actively making investments. We are developing; just recently we completely renovated the cafe on Blaumana Street, and we are looking for new premises in Riga Old Town."

In the first half of the last financial year, which ended on September 30, the company posted LVL 577,000 in turnover, compared with LVL 654,000 in the same period a year earlier.

Whitbread is a company founded in 1742, which owns not only "Costa Coffee" shops, but also "Premier Travel Inn" hotels, "Brewers Fayre" and "Beefeater" chains of pubs and restaurants, and "David Lloyd Leisure" sports clubs.