Costa Coffee to reopen 1,100 outlets for takeaway by the end of June

Coffee chain has introduced a number of safety measures

Costa Coffee has announced that thousands of its shops will be opening their doors by the end of June.

On Thursday, the retailer confirmed that 1,100 of its 2,700 branches will reopen for takeaway and delivery within the next two weeks, after nearly three months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Each of the outlets have been updated ahead of the reopening in order to adhere to strict safety guidelines and help keep both staff and customers safe.

The new measures will include perspex screens at counters, two-metre floor signs reminding customers to social distance and hand sanitiser stations situated at entrances.

Baristas will only accept contactless card payments and the chain will be offering a limited food range. Drive-through lanes will also open and customers will pick up their orders through serving hatches to limit contact.

Jill McDonald, chief executive of Costa Coffee, said she is “delighted” the outlets will reopen at the end of June.

She added that Costa Coffee has delivered more than 861,000 cans of coffee to key workers across the country since the start of lockdown.

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, a recent survey by Market Measures has found Britons are missing cafés more than pubs.

Costa Coffeee stores will only be accepting contactless payments and offering a limited menu (Getty)

The data showed that 45 per cent of consumers said they miss visiting coffee shops compared with 44 per cent who said they miss pubs.

In addition, 27 per cent of the 3,700 respondents said Costa is the chain they miss visiting most, with 14 per cent preferring Starbucks, 12 per cent Greggs, and 10 per cent Cafe Nero.

One quarter voted for McDonald's, while KFC and Nando's each received 15 per cent of the vote.

Drive-through lanes will also open and customers will pick up their orders through serving hatches to limit contact (Getty)

Costa is the latest food and drink chain to begin a phased reopening of its outlets across the UK.

McDonald's and Starbucks started reopening stores in May, while bakery Greggs reopened around 800 stores for takeaway customers on Thursday.