Joining Hanoi-based Golden Gate’s portfolio of F&B brands could reinvigorate the premium coffee chain, which has shuttered more than a third of its stores in 2024
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The Coffee House currently operates 93 stores across Vietnam | Photo credit: The Coffee House
Vietnamese restaurant giant Golden Gate has reportedly acquired Ho Chi Minh City-based coffee chain The Coffee House from retail group Seedcom, according to DealStreetAsia.
A resolution approved by Golden Gate's board of directors on 24 January 2025 shows the group acquired an as yet unnamed food and beverage operator in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Once one of Vietnam’s fastest-growing coffee chains, The Coffee House has struggled with profitability since the pandemic and shuttered more than a third of its stores in 2024 – downsizing from 150 outlets at the end of 2023 to 93 sites.
The Coffee House still has a strong presence in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, where it operates 51 and 31 stores respectively. However, the premium coffee chain closed all stores in the Can Tho and Da Nang regions in the second half of 2024, citing the need to optimise costs and improve sales performance at higher footfall locations.
The acquisition could enable The Coffee House to leverage Golden Gate’s operational expertise and strong financial resources, while providing the restaurant group with a foothold in Vietnam’s dynamic branded coffee shop market.
Founded in 2005, Golden Gate is one of Vietnam’s leading F&B groups with a portfolio comprising nearly 500 restaurants across 22 brands. Alongside popular hotpot and BBQ chains Gogi House and Kichi-Kichi, the group also operates bubble tea chain Yu Tang and café operator The Coffee Inn.
World Coffee Portal’s Project Café East Asia 2024 report shows Vietnam is the fifth largest branded coffee shop market in East Asia by outlets. Led by 2,000-store Milano Coffee, the market has become more competitive in recent years with established brands Highlands Coffee and Phuc Long Coffee & Tea, low-cost franchise operators Trung Nguyen E-Coffee and Viva Star Coffee, and emerging brands Katinat and AHA Café all gaining market share.
Headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, Seedcom took a controlling stake in The Coffee House in 2020. The retail group also operates the Juno fashion brand, supermarket chain King Food Mart and the Haravan technology platform.