SPINELLI Coffee Company is shutting all six of its remaining outlets in Singapore, 27 years after it made its debut in the city-state, The Business Times (BT) has learnt.

The American-style coffee chain is operated by Singapore-based YTC Corporation, which owns hotels and properties locally and in Indonesia.

Two employees to whom BT spoke independently confirmed that all Spinelli Coffee outlets in Singapore are ceasing operations, with most doing so by year-end. Spinelli Coffee and YTC Corp did not respond to BT’s queries.

Spinelli Coffee has two branches at the National University of Singapore’s campus. When BT visited the outlets on Tuesday (Nov 28), both displayed counter signs notifying customers that the store’s last day of operations is Dec 15.

BT understands that the Changi Business Park and One Raffles Quay branches will also close, with official notices expected to be put up at a later date. The other two outlets are at International Business Park and the Singtel Building on Pickering Street.

There were earlier signs of trouble brewing for Spinelli Coffee. Its sister brand, Daily Grind - A Spinelli Joint, appears to have quietly shut all its branches in Singapore, according to checks by BT. This includes four branches at Aperia Mall, Galaxis, MYP Centre and Ocean Financial Centre.

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Another operating brand, The Brewing Kakis, sells premium coffee with a local spin and has one store listed on Spinelli Coffee’s website.

According to filings seen by BT, Spinelli Pte Ltd incurred five consecutive years of losses from FY2018 to FY2022, though the losses started to narrow in FY2020.

Spinelli Pte Ltd posted a net loss of S$839,638 for its full year ended Dec 31, 2022, an improvement from a loss of S$943,931 in the previous financial year. Revenue for FY2022 was S$1.8 million, up from S$1.6 million in FY2021.

The entity had total assets of S$823,444 and total liabilities of S$15.5 million for the year ended Dec 31, 2022, with negative cash flow of S$228,029 from operating activities.

Spinelli Coffee was founded in San Francisco in 1983. The brand was brought into Singapore by YTC Corp under a master franchise agreement, with the first outlet opening here in 1996.

It grew to become one of the largest coffeehouse chains in Singapore alongside Starbucks and Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. By 2008, there were 28 Spinelli Coffee outlets across the island, according to past reports.

YTC took ownership of the Spinelli Coffee trademark in 2002 and had ambitions to grow the brand regionally, according to a Franchise Asia interview in 2011 with Spinelli’s then-chief operating officer Freddy Ong. Ong noted then that the company had its own coffee roasting plant here, becoming the first coffee chain to roast its beans locally.

The closure of Spinelli Coffee’s outlets comes amid a coffee shake-up in Singapore. In October, Flash Coffee abruptly shuttered its 11 Singapore outlets and filed for a voluntary winding-up.

A new wave of tech-enabled coffee joints has also intensified competition for existing players. Since entering Singapore in March, China’s Luckin Coffee has opened 24 stores.

Major Indonesian coffee chains Fore Coffee and Kopi Kenangan recently expanded to Singapore and have indicated plans to set up more stores, while Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons made its Singapore debut last week.

With additional reporting by Yong Jun Yuan