What's going on?

On Tuesday, JAB Holdings � owner of Krispy Kreme and Panera Bread � added to its smorgasbord of companies by acquiring Britain�s Pret A Manger for $2 billion.

What does this mean?

Pret A Manger started with a single store in London in 1986. Today, it has 530 stores across the UK, US and China, generating annual sales of almost $1.2 billion. That�s a lot of sandwiches.


JAB�s been on a bit of a buying binge in recent years. It�s acquired Peet�s Coffee & Tea, Keurig Green Mountain and, in January, Dr Pepper Snapple Group � for over $21 billion � in a bid to cater for consumers� every desire, wherever they are.

Why should I care?

For markets: JAB wins this round versus Nestl� and Starbucks.

Stocks of both Nestl� and Starbucks fell slightly on Tuesday as the fight for consumers� spending on snacks, lunches and coffees ramped up (tweet this). By adding Pret to its delicious spread of brands, JAB�s continuing towards its goal of becoming the world�s largest coffee company. Earlier in May, Nestl� penned a $7 billion deal with Starbucks, giving it the rights to sell �the green siren�s� beverages in grocery stores � a move Nestl� hopes will make it more competitive against JAB in the US.

The bigger picture: New conglomerates aren�t just tech companies.

JAB�s a privately owned company, so its performance isn�t subject to public scrutiny every quarter. This may allow the company to take a longer-term view when investing in companies and projects that might not pay off for a while. It�s a similar approach to tech conglomerates like Amazon, Alphabet and Alibaba � they�re adding things like autonomous cars to their businesses, while old-school conglomerates like GE are becoming leaner and more focused.