Exclusive – Coffee House secures further £7m investment from AJ Bell founder and increases target to in excess of 200 sites: North west independent coffee shop Coffee House has secured a further £7m investment from AJ Bell founder Andy Bell and increased its target to in excess of 200 sites. Propel revealed in 2024 that the brand, which was founded in 2011 by brothers Chris and Stephen Shelmerdine, had secured a £4m investment from AJ Bell and was targeting growing to 80 sites. At the time, it operated 22 coffee shops in the region – and it has since grown to 42, opening its latest store earlier this month at The Mall in Church Street, Blackburn. It is one of 16 stores Coffee House is set to open this year, as it passes the 50-store mark and looks to expand past its traditional base in the north west. The latest investment, from Bell and his former business partner Fergus Lyons, will support the expansion of Coffee House’s Warrington production facility to more than 40,000 square feet, “significantly increasing capacity and supporting future growth”. Chris Shelmerdine told Propel: “We are delighted to secure follow-on investment from Andy and Fergus. Investors quite often don’t back the same horse twice, but we’ve invested well. It increases our ambition; we can truly exceed 200 stores. We should have 55 open by the end of the year and should have expanded down to the Midlands. We also want to push further into North Wales and Yorkshire, as there’s plenty of white space in those areas. We should open 16 this year, 25 next year, then push harder and accelerate in subsequent years. We hope to go into prime retail one day, and we’ve been offered travel hubs – but community-based, secondary high streets are what we understand. Over the past two years, we have more than doubled our store estate while continuing to strengthen our production and distribution capabilities. Our focus has also been on building a strong leadership team to support the next stage of our development, and we are grateful for the continued support of our chairman, David Evans, as we scale the business further.” Co-founder Stephen Shelmerdine said: “Andy and Fergus bring valuable experience and long-term support to the business, complementing our existing shareholder group. This investment gives us the platform to continue expanding at pace and to pursue our ambition of becoming a leading coffee operator in the UK.” Andy Bell added: “Coffee House has built a strong and scalable operating model supported by high-quality production and distribution infrastructure. Chris and Stephen have created an impressive business with significant growth potential, and we are pleased to support the next phase of expansion.” The company also last year launched its first on-the-go concept – and its first garage forecourt site – at the Kay Group Primrose (Shell) in Whalley Road, Clitheroe. Chris Shelmerdine added: “We’re seeing proof of concept for our on-the-go model, which can go into units of around 800 square feet, and we hope to scale it out.” Coffee House features in the Propel Multi-Site Database, one of six databases available exclusively to Premium Club subscribers. The latest Propel Multi-Site Database, which was sent out last month, provides details of 3,536 multi-site operators and is searchable in seven main segments. The database features 1,021 (29%) casual dining operators, 805 (23%) pub and bar operators, 626 (18%) cafe bakery operators, 499 (14%) quick service restaurant operators, 290 (8%) hotel operators, 238 (7%) experiential leisure operators and 55 (2%) fine dining operators. A Premium Club subscription costs an annual sum of £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.