SINGAPORE – DFI Retail Group is set to take full control of Starbucks operations across seven Asian markets including Singapore, in a deal that effectively breaks up its longstanding 50-50 partnership with Hongkong Caterers in Maxim’s Caterers.
Maxim’s operates food and beverage businesses, including the Starbucks licensed business that operates more than 1,100 licensed Starbucks coffeehouses across Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
Singapore-listed DFI will take over the Starbucks business as part of a reorganisation of it and Hongkong Caterers’ holdings in Maxim’s Caterers.
This will see DFI give up its 50 per cent stake in Maxim’s and receive about US$340 million in cash.
Hongkong Caterers, a Hong Kong-based private company, will become the sole owner of the remaining Maxim’s business and its portfolio of more than 2,000 outlets across nine markets.
Apart from operating its own restaurants and bakeries, Maxim’s has brought several international brands into Asia, including Genki Sushi, Ippudo, Shake Shack and The Cheesecake Factory.
The deal, announced by DFI in a Singapore Exchange filing on Sept 29, is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2027, subject to customary closing conditions.
DFI and Hongkong Caterers said the day-to-day operations of both the Starbucks and Maxim’s businesses would remain unchanged during the transition.
Maxim’s was founded in Hong Kong in 1956 by the Wu family and became a joint venture between Hongkong Caterers and the Jardine Matheson Group in 1972.
For the past four decades, Jardines’ interest has been held through its subsidiary DFI, which operates retail brands including Guardian, Mannings, 7-Eleven and IKEA across the region.
The transaction is part of DFI’s shift from holding stakes in businesses managed by other partners to directly operating businesses it can control.
Although DFI owns half of Maxim’s, the restaurant group is treated as an associate because DFI does not have operational control.
DFI’s direct ownership of a large regional Starbucks network will allow it to make decisions on expansion, operations and investment together with US-listed Starbucks Corporation, which owns the Starbucks brand.
DFI said the Starbucks business would immediately add to the revenue and operating margin of its core retail operations after the transaction is completed.
DFI group chief executive Scott Price described the transaction as the final milestone in the company’s shift “from a portfolio to a focused operating company”.
The group has been reshaping its portfolio in recent years to concentrate on businesses where it sees stronger growth prospects or greater operational control.
In 2025, it sold its Singapore food retail business, comprising Cold Storage, CS Fresh, Giant and Jason’s Deli, to Malaysian retailer Macrovalue for $125 million.
The Starbucks acquisition gives DFI a consumer business with a strong brand and a footprint across seven markets, although it will also assume greater exposure to the competitive cafe industry, rising operating costs and changes in consumer spending.
Meanwhile, Maxim’s will continue operating its restaurant, bakery and catering brands while investing in expansion across mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and South-east Asia.
Hongkong Caterers and Maxim’s chairman and managing director Michael Wu said the group would continue investing in its employees, businesses and communities.
He added that its diversified portfolio of restaurants, bakeries and festive products positioned it to pursue growth in Asia and beyond.
