Artisan fresh food and coffee brand, SOHO Coffee Co, has entered into a joint venture with leading independent caterer, CH&Co Group, centred around the Apostrophe cafe chain.
The innovative venture involves SOHO’s dedicated management and development structure acquiring all of the current Apostrophe sites, using the support of CH&Co Group’s back of house systems and procurement services. It will also see CH&Co Group offering the SOHO Coffee Co. brand as part of its portfolio of catering solutions for clients.
Chris Copner, Chairman, SOHO Coffee Co, explained, “We’re very excited to align ourselves with a catering brand of the quality of CH&Co Group. This deal is the perfect opportunity for both parties to help each other grow. It immediately gives SOHO a top quality London portfolio of 15 stores to build on and gives CH&Co Group exclusive access to a rapidly growing, and increasingly international, quality food and coffee brand that will create opportunities and leverage sales in the contract catering arena.
“SOHO is an emerging and growing brand and we have a history of dynamically developing our stores. Our artisan food and drink offer has struck a chord with consumers and we now have an increasing number of flagship stores elsewhere in the world too. The emphasis is very much on future growth and we have plans to further adapt and grow the food offer in the Apostrophe branches in the coming months to meet the ever-changing needs of the chain’s customers.”
Bill Toner, CEO of CH&Co Group, added, “We’ve been watching SOHO’s growth and development with interest in recent years and they are definitely a company to watch. We’re proud to be working together on this venture.
“The joint venture is a good cultural fit and both companies have complimentary expertise; the team at Apostrophe will gain from opportunities that the wider exposure to a quality international brand like SOHO will bring and the customer experience will be enhanced further too.
“For CH&Co Group, the ability to offer the SOHO Coffee Co. brand as an additional service offer to appropriate clients is a great opportunity and early indications are that we will open about 10 SOHO outlets a year within contract catering environments.'
Toner concluded, 'Our partnership means that both companies will have a stronger portfolio, a wider footprint, and for Apostrophe, a new dedicated management team with in depth international experience of that sector – increasingly important in London, which is arguably one of the world’s most dynamic capital cities for food.”