December 2021 - 8

TOPNEWS
Pret and JDE Peet's
go after self-service
coffee market
[ KIOSK UPDATE ]
Five Star acquires
Gulf Coast Canteen
Five Star Food Service, the
nation's largest Canteen
franchise, acquired
Gulf Coast Canteen, a
Mobile, AL-based vending
operation. The acquisition
expands Five Star's
service territory further
into Alabama and marks
its entry into Florida. It
adds two branches in
Mobile and Pensacola, FL.
Terms of the transaction
were not disclosed.
VendingMarketWatch.
com/21241378
Seaga lands
financial backer
Dominus Capital L.P. has
made an investment in
Freeport, IL-based Seaga
Manufacturing Inc. The
investment amount was
not disclosed. Founded
in 1987, Seaga makes
vending machines, along
with unattended retail
accessories. It has facilities
in the Midwest and India.
Dominus founding partner
Bob Haswell said, " Seaga's
differentiated model
focuses on innovative
solutions and a customerfirst
mentality. "
VendingMarketWatch.
com/21244456
Pret A Manger
Pret Express is a self-service coffee-to-go solution
providing Pret's 100% organic coffee and tea.
PRET A MANGER IN PARTNERSHIP
with JDE Peet's plans to trial a new unattended
coffee kiosk. Pret Express will be deployed in
convenience stores, food courts, universities,
healthcare facilities and workplaces, offering
organic coffees and teas where Pret baristas are
not present.
Key points
* Next step in Pret transformation strategy,
designed to bring Pret to more people,
includes plan to open 200 new UK shops
over next two years;
* Pret Express will bring Pret's 100% organic
coffee and teas directly into workplaces and
convenience stores; and
* Trial follows recent introduction of aluminum
coffee pods, the first venture under the
partnership between Pret and JDE Peet's.
8 Automatic Merchandiser * December 2021
Evoca to close
machine factory in
Gaggio Montano
Europe's largest vending
machine manufacturer
said it is closing one of its
factories in Italy. Following
discussions with trade
unions, Evoca Group
announced on Nov. 5 that
it will shut down its coffee
equipment manufacturing
plant in Gaggio Montano
by the end of 2022.
Production is expected to
cease by the end of the
first quarter next year
at the factory known as
SaGa Coffee, where Saeco
Professional vending
and brewers are made.
VendingMarketWatch.
com/21245424
AVA expands name
and mission
The UK's AVA is expanding
its brand name to reflect
its diversified membership.
The Automatic Vending
Association, a 92-yearold
trade organization,
originally named the
Coin Operated Machine
Association, has added
" Vending and Automated
Retail Association "
to its title. " The new
name reflects a new
vision for the industry's
future, " AVA chief David
Llewellyn explained. " Our
mission is to be agile and
innovative, and to deliver
to our members, and their
customers, in an everchanging
retail landscape. "
AVA is headquartered in
Wetherby parish in Leeds.
VendingMarketWatch.
com/21246422
http://www.vendingmarketwatch.com/21241378 http://www.vendingmarketwatch.com/21244456 http://www.vendingmarketwatch.com/21245424 http://www.vendingmarketwatch.com/21246422
December 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of December 2021
