While early contenders, such as Madison’s, GoodBean, Café Nescafé, and Jacqmotte were acquired or exited the market entirely, other prominent brands, such as Coffee Republic, Caffè Ritazza, and Puccino’s never grew beyond their 1990s heydays. In the late-1990s, the UK was a veritable melting pot of nascent café brands vying to grow their share in the burgeoning coffee shop market. Today, 95% of all its stores are company-owned and a remarkable 98% are profitable. Nevertheless, over 23 years Caffè Nero has undergone a remarkable evolution from London-based independent to world-class café group – all the while maintaining its independent philosophy and brand integrity. It is what people would now say is an ‘independent coffee’ approach – that was all I wanted to do,” Ford explains. “My early vision was to build a half-dozen, very high-quality Italian coffee houses in London serving the best coffee and premium food. Instead, he still views the business as a hugely successful start-up that never lost sight of its own Just Cause to deliver quality, invest in people, and build community. Yet, becoming a global phenomenon was never Ford’s founding mission. Having achieved 88 consecutive quarters of positive like-for-like sales growth, Caffè Nero is projected to achieve revenues of US$630m in 2020. Today the business operates 1,100 stores across 11 international markets, employing over 9,000 staff from 105 nationalities. Since its inception, Ford has always espoused Caffè Nero’s objective to make a positive difference in people’s lives. ![]() Founded by Gerry Ford in 1997, the London-based coffee house brand has placed premium coffee and authentic Italian café experiences firmly at its centre. Caffè Nero is an exemplar of this mindset. In his book, The Infinite Game, leading thinker Simon Sinek proposes the most successful, innovative, and enduring businesses are driven by a Just Cause – a noble purpose beyond the pursuit of material gain. Inset: Gerry Ford, Caffè Nero Group Founder and CEO Main image: Caffè Nero’s Nişantaşı store, Istanbul, Turkey. Allegra Group Founder and CEO Jeffrey Young sat down with Caffè Nero Group Founder and CEO Gerry Ford to discuss how one of the world’s most successful café brands was developed and why staying true to its founding principles has been Caffè Nero’s greatest asset What happens when your local independent coffee shop scales into an international brand? The answer looks a lot like Caffè Nero, which since 1997 has blazed a trail through the UK café market and successfully expanded across 11 countries.
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