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I visited the coffee chain that Coca-Cola just bought for $5.1 billion — and I have no idea why anyone goes there by Tom Murray on Aug 31, 2018, 6:31 AM Advertisement
 Coca-Cola is buying British coffee chain Costa Coffee for $5.1 billion, it was announced on Friday. However, I can't work out why. The obvious answer is because Costa has, for many years, dominated the UK coffee market — growing from 39 to nearly 4,000 outlets worldwide in the space of 13 years. It is China's second-biggest coffee chain behind Starbucks, boasting over 400 stores in the country (and counting). In the last financial year, Costa made £1.3 billion ($1.69 billion) in revenue. Financially, the buyout might make sense — but I can't figure out why anyone goes to the coffee chain in the first place. Living in London, Costa Coffees are omnipresent, so I visited one of the stores for an experience comparable to every other time I have been to a Costa Coffee — utterly underwhelming. SEE ALSO: Coca-Cola just became a giant threat to Starbucks after buying one of Europe's biggest coffee chains for $5.1 billion I went to the Costa Coffee on Whitechapel High Street in East London, near Business Insider's UK headquarters. The area boasts a plethora of chain coffee shops such as Pret a Manger, Caffè Nero and Starbucks as well as a smattering of independent stores. 
Inside, Costa Coffee is a very bog-standard coffee shop. The decor is bland and inoffensive without being particularly nice, much like the food. The store itself has no particular theme or style, it's just... coffee shop. 
Costa offers a range of food along with its coffees, including paninis, wraps and salads. Customers can also buy snacks like crisps and nuts as well as cold drinks like orange juice and, ironically, Pepsi. 
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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