US-Based coffee group Starbucks may be the saving grace of quick-service restaurant group Taste Holdings, as the group struggles to find its feet after spending on the roll-out of its international brands. Taste, which owns the licensing rights to the Starbucks brand in Southern Africa, has had its share price falling 26.4% since the opening of the first Starbucks store in April last year. And since the group opened its first Domino's Pizza in October 2014, its share price has shed 35.14%. In its annual report, Taste Holdings reported that operating profit was down 66% to R19.8-million and core earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were down 35% to R47.3-million in the year to end-February 2016. At the time of the report, Taste Holdings CEO Carlo Gonzaga attributed the loss to the expansion of Starbucks and Domino's Pizza brands in South Africa. But this week, Vunani Securities small- to mid-cap analyst Anthony Clark said the losses were a result of the group ...
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