The Bogotá-based coffee group is planning to open 140 company-owned and franchised stores in the country over the next seven years
Grupo Trinity CEO Ivan Trujillo (left), Juan Valdez President Camila Escobar (centre) and Grupo Trinity Chairman Omar Gonzalez (right) | Photo credit: Grupo Trinity
Juan Valdez has signed a strategic partnership with Colombian conglomerate Grupo Trinity to accelerate outlet growth in Spain.
The joint venture partners, both based in Bogotá, Colombia, will collectively invest €40m ($43m) to open 140 new stores by 2032. Expansion will include both company-operated and franchised stores.
Juan Valdez currently operates six outlets in Spanish capital, Madrid.
The agreement will also see Grupo Trinity distribute Juan Valdez branded packaged coffee to horeca clients, as part of a wider strategy to drive brand awareness in Spain and lay the groundwork for further retail expansion across Europe.
“This expansion is the result of a strategic commitment shared by two Colombian companies that seek to take the Juan Valdez brand to its full potential, promoting shared values such as Colombian identity, integrity, service and diversity. This alliance is essential to strengthen our connection with European consumers and allows us to take a big step in the brand’s internationalisation strategy,” said Camila Escobar, President, Juan Valdez.
“As Colombians, we are proud to lead the expansion in Spain of the brand that best represents Colombia in the world,” added Omar González Pardo, President, Grupo Trinity.
Created by Colombia’s National Federation of Coffee Growers, the first Juan Valdez coffee shop opened at El Dorado International Airport in Bogotá in December 2002. The coffee chain, which takes its namesake from a fictional character designed to represent the archetypal Colombian coffee farmer, currently operates over 373 stores in Colombia alongside a further 260 across 18 international markets.
Juan Valdez’s only other European market is Turkey, where it has opened 26 outlets since debuting in April 2022.
Founded in 2005, Grupo Trinity operates across Colombia, Spain, Costa Rica and Canada within the hospitality, retail, manufacturing and commodity trading industries. The business group’s hospitality portfolio includes Colombian restaurant chain Ideal, Verano and The Pinta restaurant brands as well as the Home Burgers fast-food chain in Spain.
In January 2024, Grupo Trinity acquired 1,000-store Spanish health and beauty retail chain Clarel for €42m ($45.2m) – a move it said makes it the largest Colombian investor in the country.