Costa Coffee has announced the closure of one of its shopping centre locations, much to the dismay of local customers. The coffee chain will permanently shut its doors at Ashford's County Square on Thursday, June 18. The shopping centre has confirmed that a new business is already lined up to occupy the vacated space.
Official Confirmation of Closure
The Ashford County Square press team released a statement confirming that Costa Coffee had not renewed its lease. The statement read: "We are sad to advise Costa will be departing, with their last trading day advised as Thursday. After many years of trading at County Square, we are sorry to see them go and would like to wish Costa and their staff much success for their future." It added: "All being well, the space won't be empty for long. We look forward to sharing more information as plans develop."
Public Reaction
Local residents expressed their disappointment over the closure. Melissa Andrews commented online: "So much for people saying if you don't use it you will lose it. People were always here." Carl Holness added: "It's a real shame Costa is going - I often visit when I'm out."
Remaining Costa Coffee Branches in Ashford
Despite this closure, Costa Coffee will continue to operate eight other branches in Ashford. These include three standalone sites at Ashford Designer Outlet, Ashford Retail Park in Sevington, and Drovers Retail Park, which opened in November. Costa cafes also operate from Tesco Crooksfoot, Tesco Park Farm, William Harvey Hospital, and Ashford International station. Additionally, a new shop opened within Sainsbury's Bybrook in December, taking over the supermarket's closed cafe.
Costa Coffee's Global Presence
Costa Coffee operates in 50 countries worldwide, with over 2,700 coffee shops in the UK and Ireland and more than 1,300 globally. The company also runs over 14,200 coffee machines in the UK alone.
