Henderson Foodservice’s coffee-to-go brand Barista Bar is expanding into Scotland thanks to an exclusive distribution deal with Spar’s Scottish wholesaler CJ Lang & Son.

The deal, worth £2.5m, will see Barista Bar replace CJ Lang’s incumbent coffee offering in its 104 company-owned stores, as well as in several independent Spar stores in Scotland.

The first installation took place at David Sands’ Pinkie Farm site in Musselburgh, East Lothian in August, with the retailer experience a 100% growth in his coffee-to-go sales.

Barista Bar’s expansion into CJ Lang sites means it is available via 730 machines across the UK, selling more than 12 million cups per year. Its machines use a patented milk system to create a unique foam, and it also offers an oat milk option through its Planted machine.

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Mark Stewart-Maunder, commercial and development director at Henderson Foodservice, said: “Two years ago, our Foodservice company invested over £6m into Barista Bar to upgrade the brand and machinery to produce a stand-out product that has had a hugely positive impact on our retailers’ sales and footfall, and our very first Barista Bar Drive Thru opened at Spar Mallusk just last year. We look forward to CJ Lang & Son’s stores and independent retailers experiencing this boost as we continue to show the benefits of a high-quality food and coffee to go offering within convenience retailing.”

Colin McClean, chief executive at CJ Lang, said the wholesaler anticipated offering Barista Bar across all its company-owned sites by the end of 2024, and hinted at further expansion.

“This exclusive brand franchise agreement with Barista Bar coffee is a great commercial proposition for not only our Scottish Spar independent retailers and our Spar Scotland company owned estate but for all convenience and petrol forecourt stores in Scotland,” he said.

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