Reborn Coffee signs MOU to acquire South Korea’s Bbang Ssaem Bakery

A Reborn Coffee outlet in California, US | Photo credit: Reborn Coffee

California-based Reborn Coffee has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to acquire 31-store South Korean bakery-café chain Bbang Ssaem Bakery. 
 

In a press release, Reborn Coffee said the ‘strategic move’ will ‘solidify its position as a premier coffee and bakery franchise’ in the US and South Korea – a market it has been seeking to enter since acquiring a coffee shop, roastery and R&D facility in Daejeon in December 2022.  

The strong EBITDA generated by Bbang Ssaem will also positively impact its profitability, the specialty coffee roaster and café chain added. 

“We are thrilled to sign this MOU with Bbang Ssaem Bakery. This agreement marks a significant milestone in our growth strategy, allowing us to offer our customers a broader range of high-quality products,” said Jay Kim, CEO, Reborn Coffee. 

Reborn Coffee, which expects to open its first coffee shop in South Korea before the end of the year, will immediately rollout its proprietary coffee blend across all Bbang Ssaem sites. 

The business will also seek to ‘integrate Bbang Ssaem Bakery’s extensive retail operations’ across its US stores, including the bakery-café chain’s proprietary dough technology which it said will be ‘instrumental’ in supporting its domestic franchise development. 

Reborn Coffee currently operates 11 stores across California and is exploring opportunities to open its first sites outside the state in Texas and Missouri. 

The acquisition has been supported by ‘significant outside investment’, according to the press release. Reborn Coffee Chairman Farooq Arjomand committed $1m in January 2024 to expand the brand’s international presence before the same sum was raised in March 2024 from South Korean investor Scott Lee to support growth plans in the east Asian country.