April 19, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] A Twosome Place, Koreas second largest coffee chain which was spun-off from CJ Foodville, has attracted investment worth 130 billion won (US$121.12 million) from multiple investors, according to industry sources on Feb. 1.

They noted that CJ Foodville will receive the funding by selling 32,500 shares of the coffee franchise on Feb. 26.

The investment will reportedly be made through a special purpose company funded jointly by Hong Kong-based global private equity firm Anchor Equity Partners, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

The spin-off decision in November was made mainly because the company found it difficult for the coffee chain to become profitable enough to finance its other divisions under the current structure.

The coffee chain’s profits had been used to offset the parent firm’s money-losing businesses. A Twosome Place’s operating profit stood at 30 billion won in 2016, while CJ Foodville’s overall operating loss reached 2.3 billion won.

Through this move, the cafe chain operator also plans to further strengthen its presence in the global market.

“We are also planning to attract more funds in the future through issuing new stocks, in order to become a global brand,” a CJ Foodville spokesperson told The Investor.

Industry watchers speculate that the company’s aggressive steps to attract investments is a precursor to going public. The company had earlier noted that it is considering an IPO as part of its long-term plan, but no decision has been taken yet.

A Twosome Place is the second biggest coffee chain in Korea with 910 stores here, following Starbucks Coffee Korea.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heraldcorp.com)