Global Coffee Brand, Costa Coffee, Launches in Canada with approximately 150 Coffee Bars

-  The UK's favourite coffee shop brand¹ launches in collaboration with Shell -
- Potential for 700 Costa Express coffee bars in Canada by 2020 -

CALGARY, Feb. 29, 2015 /CNW/ - Costa Coffee, the UK's fastest growing coffee shop business is set to launch in Canada.  Costa launches in collaboration with Shell in Canada, which will see approximately 150 Costa Express self-serve coffee bars rolled out in Shell gas stations in Toronto, Alberta and Vancouver, with potential for a further 550 sites nationwide by 2020.

Costa Express is part of Costa Coffee, the UK's favourite coffee shop chain with over 2,000 coffee shops in the UK and more than 1,180 stores across 30 international markets. Costa Express self-serve coffee bars expertly marry high-quality coffee and fresh milk that coffee-lovers enjoy in coffee shops with the ease, speed, and efficiency offered by leading-technology to better serve customers on-the-go. The Costa Express proposition has enjoyed significant growth internationally, expanding from 877 machines in 2011 to over 5,000 today across the UK and nine international markets.

Murray McGowan, Costa Express Managing Director, comments: "We are delighted to extend our global presence with our launch in Canada, a dynamic and thriving country with an established coffee culture. The scale of Shell in Canada, as well as our well established multi-market partnership gave us the ideal platform from which to roll out our brand. Through our partnership with Shell and our world-leading coffee proposition we feel confident that we will transform Canadian customer perception about the quality of on-the-go coffee available in forecourts, just as we did in the UK, increasing the appeal of Shell sites to their customers and giving customers more reasons to visit more often."

With a sleek design courtesy of Italian specialist, Pininfarina, famous for designing vehicles such as Ferrari, the Costa Express self-serve coffee bars are unlike any other self-serve coffee machine. The 27 inch touch screen control has been developed by gaming specialists, Atomhawk, who helped to create Pottermore, the interactive site for Harry Potter fans, while customers will also smell freshly ground coffee and hear coffee shop sounds mixed by eMixpro - a firm that often works with the likes of U2 and Katy Perry.

Murray McGowan, adds: "The success of Costa Express is down to being able to provide customers with quality coffee when they need it most, in locations that they were previously unable to find it. We have always been confident that combining our superior technology with the same quality freshly-ground coffee and fresh milk found on the high-street through Costa, we would be able to deliver an unbeatable customer experience. Customer feedback from our initial trials in Vancouver was really positive and we're excited about bringing Costa Coffee to more of our customers in Canada."

Sydney Kimball, Shell Vice President Fuels Sales & Marketing North America, said: "We're pleased to be the first to market and lead the introduction of Costa Express Coffee into Canada. We aim to provide our customers with a great experience when they visit our locations. Our goal to offer the best service and quality fuels to customers is now strengthened with the best On-The-Go food and coffee options. Costa is a valuable business partner and we look forward to extending our relationship further in response to customers' needs."

About Costa
Costa is the UK's favourite coffee shop, having been awarded "Best Branded Coffee Shop Chain in the UK and Ireland" by Allegra Strategies for six years running (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 & December 2015).

With 2,000 coffee shops in the UK and more than 1,180 in 30 overseas markets, Costa is the fastest growing coffee shop business in the UK. Costa Express provides quality on-the-go coffee through over 5,000 self-serve coffee bars in the UK and internationally. Founded in London by Italian brothers Sergio and Bruno Costa in 1971, Costa has become the UK's favourite coffee shop chain and diversified into both the at-home and gourmet self-serve markets.

Costa employs over 30,000 people worldwide and is creating around 1,500 jobs this year and over 4,500 jobs in the next three years in the UK.

About Shell Retail
For more than 100 years, Shell has focused upon making customers' fuels retailing experiences as convenient as possible.

With circa 43,000 sites operating across more than 70 countries, 500,000 people serve in excess of 25 million customers around the world every day. We are able to do this with the help of our valued partners who supplement and improve our offer.

In Canada, Shell has circa 1,200 branded Retail stations, serving approximately 500,000 customers per day. Shell has been active in Canada since 1911 and offers differentiated fuels that include Nitrogen Enriched gasoline and Shell V Power NITRO+ Premium Gasoline.

SOURCE Shell Canada Limited

Kate Clarke, Group PR Manager, Costa | [phone] | [email protected]; Shell Canada Media Relations | [phone] | [email protected]