The F&B market (food and beverage industry) is abuzz with information related to The Coffee House coffee chain of retail group Seedcom and Golden Gate Group.

According to Deal Street Asia , Golden Gate Group is said to have acquired this coffee chain. However, the parties involved have not yet released any official information regarding the deal.

Golden Gate was founded by three businessmen: Mr. Dao The Vinh (born in 1972), Mr. Nguyen Xuan Tuong (born in 1972) and Mr. Tran Viet Trung. According to its self-introduction, this enterprise is a pioneer in applying the restaurant chain model in Vietnam, with 5 main culinary styles, including hot pot, grill, Asian dishes, European dishes and coffee.

Some of Golden Gate's typical restaurant chains include Kichi Kichi conveyor hotpot (cheap hotpot buffet), Japanese restaurants (iSushi, Durama, Icook), Gogi House and Sumo BBQ grill restaurant chains; Cowboy Jack's (pizza for young people), Vuvuzela beer restaurant chain and Citybeer Station.

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The Coffee House coffee chain falls into the hands of the Golden Gate tycoon. Photo: DealStreetAsia

In March 2023, Golden Gate's shareholder structure changed when a group of shareholders from Temasek (under the Singapore Government), Seatown Private Capital Master Fund and Periwinkle Pte Ltd appeared after receiving the transfer of nearly 36% of Golden Gate's capital from a group of existing shareholders.

Meanwhile, Seedcom - the corporation that owns The Coffee House brand - was founded in 2014 by Mr. Dinh Anh Huan, one of the 5 co-founders of Mobile World. Seedcom owns an ecosystem revolving around the retail sector including The Coffee House coffee chain, Kingfoodmart, fashion brands Hnoss, Juno...

In 2022, Seedcom completed the issuance of 6.27 million shares to Ficus Asia Investment Pte. Ltd (Ficus Asia Investment), to increase charter capital from VND 690.7 billion to VND 753.4 billion.

How big is The Coffee House chain?

Founded in 2014, The Coffee House is associated with the dream of a “coffee house” of founder Nguyen Hai Ninh. He has steered this coffee chain to become a force in the Vietnamese F&B industry.

In 2018, Nikkei rated The Coffee House as the fastest growing chain among coffee startups in Vietnam. However, in early 2021, Mr. Nguyen Hai Ninh announced his departure from The Coffee House.

The first person to take over from Mr. Hai Ninh was Mr. Mai Hoang Phuong, one of the founding members of Seedcom. In July 2021, Mr. Le Ba Nam Anh was appointed CEO. However, in March 2024, Mr. Nam Anh also left this position. Currently, the CEO and legal representative of The Coffee House is Mr. Ngo Nguyen Kha.

After many times of increasing the scale and calling for more capital, The Coffee House has become one of the coffee chains with the largest number of stores in Vietnam. According to information on Seedcom's website, The Coffee House has 155 stores in many provinces and cities across the country.

Under Mr. Ninh, The Coffee House paid close attention to the layout of the store, from the height of the tables and chairs, everything had to be the correct standard size. The Coffee House once made a difference and scored points in the eyes of consumers by not using plastic and paper cups. However, in July 2022, this coffee chain suddenly stopped using glass cups, switching to plastic and paper cups to serve customers.

The Coffee House has also faced a "media crisis". Most recently, many customers called for a boycott of this brand after a broken glass incident injured a female doctor at The Coffee House Thai Ha (Hanoi), although the unit said it had proposed a plan to support the patient's family.

After Covid-19, the F&B market faced difficulties, many coffee chains had to close. The Coffee House began to downsize. The downsizing of stores was explained as an attempt to optimize costs, improve business operations, and adapt to changing conditions.

The Coffee House Signature store - a model opened in April 2018, focusing on experiences with high-end customers - on Pham Ngoc Thach Street (District 3, HCMC) had to stop operating, causing many people to regret.

In 2023, The Coffee House also withdrew from the Can Tho market, after 6 years of business. This move also took place in Da Nang. In many other provinces and cities, this coffee chain is also streamlining its model by closing some branches.

In addition to its tea and coffee chain, The Coffee House once had ambitions to expand its operations into the milk tea sector. In 2017, the company bought the franchise of the Taiwanese (Chinese) Ten Ren brand. However, less than 2 years later, all 23 Ten Ren stores stopped operating in Vietnam due to unsatisfactory business results.

With the emergence of many coffee shop chains, The Coffee House is facing great competitive pressure. If there is no change, this coffee chain may gradually lose its position.