The Costa coffee customer experience

The total global domination of Costa Coffee seems an unstoppable force as they dominate every high street, petrol station and inch of commercial space available. Few towns and cities in the UK have escaped one of their outlets with many enjoying the benefits of multiple branches where you can enjoy a costa consumable every twenty paces. Costa in spite of its name is a British company owned by Whitbread and established in 1971 but rapidly approaching 1500 outlets in the UK. For the small independent coffee house, Costa is the equivalent of Tescos to your local greengrocer, stomping all over your footfall and undercutting your prices. The march of Costa will not have escaped the attention of the likes of  McDonalds even as many people prefer the option of a panini for lunch over a burger. The experience is common throughout the country offering the same range of food and drinks at middle of the road prices. Quality is good and the environment is pleasant enough with Italian inspired interiors, not sure where the connection is but it is done well enough. Costa has even entered the world of customer loyalty cards offering points towards discounts, swallowing up all that valuable customer data to know your every purchase and journey habits. You would struggle to call it epic but you can't ignore it!