JAB Weighs IPO for Coffee Business Including Peet’s Brand

(Bloomberg) -- JAB Holding Co. said it’s considering an initial public offering of a coffee business including brands such as Peet’s and Jacobs.

The investment firm, backed by the billionaire Reimann family, plans to combine the Jacobs Douwe Egberts and Peet’s units in a single entity prior to a possible listing. The company aims to raise as much as 3 billion euros ($3.4 billion), the Financial Times reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.

JAB said in February that it was considering an IPO of its coffee business. The firm has spent tens of billions of dollars investing in brands such as Caribou, Stumptown and Intelligentsia, challenging Nestle SA and Starbucks Corp. for leadership in the industry. JAB has also acquired fast-food brands ranging from Krispy Kreme Doughnuts to the Pret A Manger sandwich chain.

The new concern created from the merger, JDE Peet’s, will operate in more than 140 countries and have revenues of about 7 billion euros, according to a statement. Other brands included in the new coffee business include Senseo, Tassimo and Pickwick.

JAB is considering Amsterdam for the listing, the FT reported. Peet’s Coffee Chief Executive Officer Casey Keller will become CEO of JDE Peet’s in January 2020, the company said.

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