Kenco

Kenco is a British coffee brand whose roots date to 1923, when a cooperative of retired Kenyan coffee growers established The Kenya Coffee Company Limited. The business initially distributed coffee to Britain and later developed a retail and catering presence in London. It is now principally known as a supermarket and food-service brand for instant coffee, although its early history included mail-order sales, cafés, roast-and-ground coffee, catering, and the sale of espresso machines. The company’s first retail activity was associated with coffee sellers L.C. Gibbs and C.S. Baines, who operated from a shop in Vere Street, Mayfair. The shop sold roast and ground coffee locally, but much of its business came through mail order. Advertisements in publications such as Tatler, Country Life, and The Times helped the company reach customers outside London, including country houses. As demand grew, the business moved to premises at 30 Sloane Street, next to food merchant John Gardiner. Gardiner’s wider business included wholesale food distribution, restaurants, and outdoor catering at events including the Wimbledon Tennis Championships. During the 1930s, the company expanded its physical operations through premises in Bermondsey and Earlsfield. After the Second World War, Gardiner employee Tom Kelly persuaded the company to acquire the Kenya Coffee Company and subsequently took charge of the business. Kelly expanded the retail operation and diversified into catering. The company opened eleven coffee shops in London locations including Wimbledon, King’s Road, and Golders Green. These outlets have been described as possible early examples of branded high-street coffee shops in the United Kingdom. By the 1960s, the cafés were selling coffee and cakes and had become an important part of the business. The company also acquired rights to sell Gaggia espresso machines, supplying equipment to other coffee bars. The company changed its name from the Kenya Coffee Company to the Kenco Coffee Company in 1962. The rebranding reflected the fact that the proportion of coffee purchased from Kenya was declining, making the older geographic name less representative of the business. In 1964, Trust Houses acquired John Gardiner, and in 1969 Trust Houses sold Kenco to Cadbury Schweppes. Kenco later passed through several ownership changes. Cadbury Schweppes sold the brand, together with Typhoo and Hartley’s, in 1986 through a management buyout that created Premier Brands. Kenco was sold again in 1987 to General Foods in a transaction connected with Hillsdown’s purchase of Premier Brands. The acquisition helped General Foods become the leading coffee manufacturer in the United Kingdom, with a reported 25 percent market share at the time. Kenco became part of Kraft General Foods in 1989 after Philip Morris combined its food operations with Kraft. The business was renamed Kraft Foods in 1995. Following the later separation of Kraft’s food businesses, Kenco became part of Mondelēz International. In 2014, Mondelēz combined its coffee operations with DE Master Blenders to create Jacobs Douwe Egberts, now known as JDE Peet’s. Kenco remains an active brand within JDE Peet’s coffee portfolio. Product development has centered on convenient coffee formats. Kenco introduced instant freeze-dried coffee during the 1980s. In 2008, the brand relaunched with 75 percent of the beans used in its instant range sourced from Rainforest Alliance-certified farms. In 2011, it launched Millicano, a “whole bean instant” product combining roast-and-ground coffee with instant coffee. The launch was described as Kenco’s most successful coffee introduction, selling nearly one million packs within four weeks. Kenco states that its coffee sourcing has included Brazil, Costa Rica, Colombia, Peru, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and Indonesia, giving the brand a broader origin profile than its historic name suggests.

Kenco traces its history to 1923, when a cooperative of retired Kenyan coffee growers formed The Kenya Coffee Company Limited. The business began distributing coffee to Britain and soon developed a London retail presence. L.C. Gibbs and C.S. Baines sold roast and ground coffee from a shop in Vere Street, Mayfair. Although the shop served local customers, mail order was central to its early business. Advertising in Tatler, Country Life, and The Times helped the company sell coffee to country houses and other customers beyond London. As the business expanded, it moved to 30 Sloane Street, beside food merchant John Gardiner. Gardiner operated a wholesale food business, restaurants, and an outdoor-catering operation that supplied events such as the Wimbledon Tennis Championships. During the 1930s, the coffee company added premises in Bermondsey and Earlsfield. The postwar period brought a significant change in ownership and business direction. Tom Kelly, who worked for Gardiner, persuaded the company to acquire The Kenya Coffee Company and was placed in charge after the transaction. Kelly expanded the retail operation, retained mail-order sales, and moved into catering. The company opened eleven coffee shops at London locations including Wimbledon, King’s Road, and Golders Green. These outlets may have been among the earliest branded high-street coffee shops in Britain. By the 1960s, the cafés were selling coffee, cakes, and other refreshments. The company also acquired rights to sell Gaggia espresso machines, allowing it to supply equipment to other coffee bars. In 1962, the Kenya Coffee Company adopted the name Kenco Coffee Company. The change reflected the declining share of Kenyan coffee in the company’s purchases and gave the business a name that was less tied to a single origin. In October 1964, Trust Houses acquired John Gardiner. Trust Houses then sold Kenco to Cadbury Schweppes in 1969. Kenco’s ownership changed repeatedly during the following decades. Cadbury Schweppes sold Kenco, along with Typhoo and Hartley’s, in 1986 through a management buyout. The new owners operated as Premier Brands, but Kenco was sold to General Foods the following year in an arrangement associated with Hillsdown’s acquisition of Premier. The General Foods acquisition made the company the leading coffee manufacturer in the United Kingdom at that time, with a reported 25 percent share of the market. In 1989, Kenco became part of Kraft General Foods after Philip Morris combined the business with its other food operations. The company was renamed Kraft Foods in 1995. After Kraft’s later corporate separation, Kenco became part of Mondelēz International. Mondelēz combined its coffee operations with DE Master Blenders in 2014, creating Jacobs Douwe Egberts. That business subsequently became JDE Peet’s, under which Kenco is sold in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Kenco’s product history increasingly focused on instant coffee. Freeze-dried instant coffee was introduced in the 1980s. In 2008, the brand relaunched its instant range and reported that 75 percent of the beans used in that range came from Rainforest Alliance-certified farms. Kenco has identified sourcing from Brazil, Costa Rica, Colombia, Peru, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and Indonesia. In 2011, it launched Millicano, a whole-bean instant coffee made by combining roast-and-ground coffee with instant coffee. The launch sold nearly one million packs in four weeks and was described as the brand’s most successful coffee launch. Kenco is currently best understood as a British instant-coffee brand, while its historical activities included cafés, catering, mail order, equipment distribution, and roast-and-ground coffee.

• 2014

  Kenco enters the Jacobs Douwe Egberts portfolio

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  Mondelēz combines its coffee operations with DE Master Blenders, creating the business that became Jacobs Douwe Egberts and later JDE Peet’s.

• 2011

  Millicano launches

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  Kenco introduces Millicano, combining roast-and-ground coffee with instant coffee in a whole-bean instant format.

• 2008

  Instant range relaunch

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  Kenco relaunches its instant range with a reported 75 percent of beans sourced from Rainforest Alliance-certified farms.

• 1995

  The parent business is renamed Kraft Foods

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  The Kraft General Foods business is renamed Kraft Foods, with Kenco remaining within the group.

• 1989

  Kenco becomes part of Kraft General Foods

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  Kenco enters Kraft General Foods following Philip Morris’s combination of its food operations with Kraft.

• 1987

  Kenco joins General Foods

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  Kenco is sold to General Foods after a brief period under Premier Brands.

• 1980

  Freeze-dried instant coffee is introduced

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  Kenco expands its instant-coffee range with freeze-dried coffee during the 1980s.

• 1969

  Kenco is sold to Cadbury Schweppes

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  After Trust Houses acquires John Gardiner in 1964, it sells Kenco to Cadbury Schweppes in 1969.

• 1962

  The business adopts the Kenco name

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  The Kenya Coffee Company changes its name to the Kenco Coffee Company as Kenyan coffee becomes a smaller part of its purchasing mix.

• 1945

  Postwar acquisition and retail expansion

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  After the Second World War, Tom Kelly helps acquire the Kenya Coffee Company and expands its coffee-shop and catering activities.

• 1930

  Expansion of London operations

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  During the 1930s, the company expands beyond its Sloane Street base with premises in Bermondsey and Earlsfield.

• 1923

  The Kenya Coffee Company is established

  [1]Kencoen.wikipedia.org

  A cooperative of retired Kenyan coffee growers establishes The Kenya Coffee Company Limited and begins distributing coffee to Britain.

A mainstream British coffee brand built around convenient instant coffee, with heritage in London coffee shops and mail-order coffee and a later emphasis on coffee-origin sourcing and certified supply.

• Instant coffee

  Kenco Instant Coffee

  Kenco’s core product area is instant coffee sold primarily through the United Kingdom and Ireland. The range developed from the brand’s historical coffee business and includes conventional instant formats as well as freeze-dried products introduced during the 1980s. In 2008, Kenco relaunched its instant range with a stated emphasis on beans from Rainforest Alliance-certified farms.

• Whole-bean instant coffee · 2011

  Kenco Millicano

  Millicano is Kenco’s whole-bean instant coffee format, introduced in 2011. It combines roast-and-ground coffee with instant coffee to provide a more coffee-forward format while retaining the preparation convenience associated with instant coffee. The launch reportedly sold nearly one million packs within four weeks and became the brand’s most successful coffee launch.

• Freeze-dried instant coffee · 1980

  Kenco Freeze-Dried Coffee

  Kenco introduced freeze-dried instant coffee during the 1980s as part of its move toward convenient preparation formats. Freeze-drying became one of the brand’s important product technologies as Kenco shifted from its earlier retail, café, mail-order, and roast-and-ground heritage toward packaged coffee sold through grocery and food-service channels.

• Roast-and-ground coffee · 1923

  Kenco Roast and Ground Coffee

  Roast-and-ground coffee was central to Kenco’s early business. The company sold it from London premises and by mail order before becoming primarily identified with instant coffee. The brand’s later Millicano product also incorporated roast-and-ground coffee, linking Kenco’s historic preparation style with a modern instant format.

• 2011

  Launch Millicano whole-bean instant coffeeProduct launch

  Background

  Kenco sought to combine the convenience of instant coffee with characteristics associated with roast-and-ground coffee.

  Action taken

  The brand introduced Millicano, a blend containing 15 percent roast-and-ground coffee and instant coffee.

  Aftermath

  The product sold nearly one million packs within four weeks and was described as Kenco’s most successful coffee launch.

  Packs sold. Nearly 1 million packs (Within four weeks of the 2011 launch)

  Source

• 2008

  Relaunch the instant range with certified sourcingStrategy

  Background

  Kenco sought to refresh its instant-coffee proposition and communicate more clearly about the sourcing of its coffee beans.

  Action taken

  The brand relaunched its instant range, reporting that 75 percent of the beans were sourced from Rainforest Alliance-certified farms.

  Aftermath

  The relaunch connected Kenco’s packaged coffee range with sustainability certification and a broader origin-sourcing story.

  Source

• 1962

  Rename the Kenya Coffee Company as KencoStrategy

  Background

  The company was buying a declining share of its coffee from Kenya, making its original geographic name less representative of its sourcing and business.

  Action taken

  The Kenya Coffee Company changed its name to the Kenco Coffee Company.

  Aftermath

  The Kenco name became the continuing consumer identity of the coffee business.

  Source

1. 1Kencoen.wikipedia.org