Caffè Nero North America emerged as the winning bidder in Compass Coffee’s Chapter 11 sale process this week, with a bid valued at $4,764,988, according to court documents.
The winning price exceeds the $2.9 million “stalking horse” offer that Caffè Nero made after Compass Coffee’s initial bankruptcy filing in early January. The Washington D.C.-area specialty coffee company described the transaction as an asset purchase that included “substantially all” inventory, equipment and intellectual property, plus certain leases and contracts.
Compass co-founder and CEO Michael Haft told The Washington Post that Caffè Nero is expected, at least initially, to continue operating 17 D.C.-area cafes under the Compass name, while beginning transition conversations with managers and staff. Numerous Compass Coffee locations have closed within the past two weeks.
A hearing to approve the sale is scheduled for Feb. 26 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Columbia. If the sale is approved and closes, Caffè Nero would become the new owner of substantially all Compass Coffee assets.
Caffè Nero, founded in London in 1997 by Gerry Ford, has more than 1,000 locations globally and a comparatively modest U.S. footprint concentrated around Boston. The Compass deal would give the company an immediate foothold in the D.C. market.
The court notice identified an entity called Next Gen Coffee Enterprises LLC as the backup bidder in the Compass auction, with a bid of $4,663,000, positioning it to step in if the winning deal fails to close.
Compass Coffee was founded in 2014, growing to more than two dozen locations in the DMV area. The Chapter 11 filing lands amid a dispute between Compass’s founders. In January 2025, co-founder Harrison Suarez sued Compass, Michael Haft and another owner in federal court, alleging fraud and other claims. In a memorandum opinion dated Nov. 3, 2025, the court allowed all but one of Suarez’s claims to proceed past a motion to dismiss.
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Nick Brown
Nick Brown is the editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine.
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