New Zealand based Cooks Coffee Company, holding company of popular Irish coffee chain Esquires, is set to dual list on the Aquis Stock Exchange in London this November and has announced a fund-raising round with a goal of raising £1.5m ahead of the floatation. Cooks Coffee Company is currently listed on the stock exchange in Wellington in New Zealand but announced plans for a dual listing in London back in August.
Cooks Coffee Company is the largest solely franchisor-focused café chain in Ireland and the UK and operates 111 outlets across Ireland, the UK and its international markets with two brands, Triple Two Coffee, which was acquired in June 2020, and Esquires- The Organic Coffee Co, which was founded almost 30 years ago. There are currently 15 Esquires sites in Ireland with a new outlet set to open in The Square, Tallaght, in Dublin before Christmas and an outlet in Carlow due to open early next year.
Tony McVerry, Managing Director of Esquires Coffee in Ireland, said, “We are delighted to be dual listing on the Aquis Stock Exchange in London which provides us with an avenue to raise capital for growth which will help expand our shareholder base both in Ireland and the UK and allow for easier trading in Cook shares. Building on our position as the largest solely franchisor focused café chain in the UK and Ireland, we see considerable opportunities for further growth both here and the UK.”
“The Cooks Coffee franchise model promotes individual entrepreneurship and local community engagement, which appears to be resonating both with people who want to partner with us in Esquires to open new sites, and existing franchisees looking to grow their businesses through innovative new offerings. Having emerged from the pandemic in a healthy position, I believe we are now poised for significant growth that will deliver value not only for our shareholders, but also for our franchise owners who are the cornerstone of our business.”
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