The German Reimann family is relinquishing control of its coffee business with a landmark transaction. The U.S.-based Keurig Dr Pepper is acquiring Dutch coffee group JDE Peet’s for EUR 15.7 billion (USD 18.4 billion), paying shareholders EUR 31.85 per share in cash plus the already announced EUR 0.36 dividend. Through their investment arm JAB Holding, the Reimanns had controlled 69 % of JDE Peet’s voting rights but have committed to tender their shares. Once the deal closes, the family will no longer control the global coffee business and will retain only a small minority stake in Keurig Dr Pepper.
The combined entity, projected to generate USD 16 billion in annual revenue, will be split into two listed companies: a beverages division under Tim Cofer in Frisco, Texas, and a coffee division led by Sudhanshu Priyadarshi in Burlington, Massachusetts, with an international headquarters remaining in Amsterdam. JDE Peet’s contributes over 50 brands, including Jacobs, Douwe Egberts, Peet’s, and L’Or, while Keurig Dr Pepper adds its capsule coffee platform and well-known soft drink brands such as Dr Pepper, 7 Up, and Schweppes. The companies expect USD 400 million in synergies over three years.
Financial markets responded with sharp contrast: JDE Peet’s shares rose by more than 17 % in Amsterdam, while Keurig Dr Pepper’s stock fell around 4.5 % on Wall Street. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2026, pending regulatory and shareholder approval.
This deal follows a gradual reduction of JAB’s holdings in Keurig Dr Pepper into a minor investor, where the family once held more than a quarter of the company
- 2018: JAB Holding buys Dr. Pepper Snapples for USD 18.7 billion and merges it with US coffee company Keurig Green Mountain (inside.beer, 29.1.2018)
- End of 2023: JAB’s stake stood at around 28 %.
- February 2024: JAB sold roughly 87 million shares at USD 29.10 per share, reducing its stake to about 21 %.
- October 2024: A secondary offering of 60 million shares (plus a 9 million-share option) lowered the stake to about 16.5 % (15.8 % if the option was exercised) (inside.beer, 29.10.2024).
- May 2025: Another 75 million shares were sold, cutting JAB’s holding to just 4.4 %, where it stands at the time of the JDE Peet’s transaction.
For the Reimanns, the sale of JDE Peet’s marks the end of more than a decade of aggressive coffee consolidation under JAB Holding. Leadership of the holding has recently shifted from long-time architect Peter Harf to Joachim Creus and Frank Engelen, who are steering the portfolio in a new direction. Part of that shift includes diversification into insurance and pet health, areas viewed as more resilient. At the same time, JAB faces pressure from underperforming assets: most notably Coty, the cosmetics group, which recently plunged by more than 22 % after weak quarterly results. The contrast between a profitable exit from coffee and a struggling beauty investment underscores the challenges the family’s discreet empire is currently navigating.
