Starbucks’ fancy footwork over tax delivers strong consumer preference for Costa

IN THE BATTLE for dominance of the UK’s coffee houses two giants have slugged it out on almost every high street. Starbucks, the cool Seattle-based global brand, entered Britain in 1998 with the buyout of the 60-outlet Seattle Coffee Company. It has since expanded to 735 stores which deliver annual turnover of around £430m but it is no longer the market leader. That prize (narrowly) goes to Costa the coffee house brand of pubs and entertainment group Whitbread with sales of £473m.