US giant Coke buys UK coffee firm for £1bn over the odds

Price the British firm Whitbread paid for 39 branches in 1995 the future you could well see Costa Coffee.” Whitbread also owns Premier Inn hotels and Beefeater restaurants. It will use the cash to cut debt, bump up its pension fund and pay shareholders. Angus Grierson, managing director of LGB Corporate Finance, said: “The substantial premium Coca-Cola is paying reflects the urgency with which the company needs to reduce its focus on sugary beverages.”