What Bicafé does

Bicafé – Torrefacção e Comércio de Café, Lda. is a Portuguese private limited company headquartered in São Pedro da Cova, Gondomar, that roasts and trades coffee in whole bean, ground, and capsule formats. Its core business is the manufacture of capsules compatible with three major installed-base systems in the Iberian market—Nespresso, Nescafé Dolce Gusto, and Delta Q—plus proprietary capsule lines for its own Bicafé SUBLIME and ZORRA coffee machines, including a 100% biodegradable Nespresso-compatible range (Ristretto Biodegradável NSP, Forte Biodegradável, Gourmet Biodegradável NSP, Decaf Biodegradável NSP). The product portfolio spans single tubes (€1.99–€6.09), economy packs of 100–192 capsules (€24.49–€47), Office Kits bundling 100 capsules with 100 paper cups, and complementary accessories such as sugar sticks and porcelain cups. Whole bean and ground blends combine Central American Arabica with West African Robusta.

The go-to-market is primarily direct-to-consumer e-commerce through bicafecapsulas.com, with same-day delivery in the Porto metropolitan area for orders placed before 8h00, 72-hour delivery to mainland Portugal (free over €25), and standard shipping to Madeira, the Azores (€37.50), and Spain via third-party couriers. A secondary B2B channel uses a dedicated commercial team that runs Zorra machine demonstrations in Greater Porto for office and professional customers. Marketing relies on the company website, organic social media, and email newsletters, with consumer testimonials surfacing as social proof rather than enterprise case studies.

Bicafé is privately held with no disclosed external investors, parent company, or funding rounds, and operates with a horizontal segmentation approach across individual consumers and the office segment. The company participates in the Sustainable Plastics project alongside Sonae MC, Codil, Bio4plas, PIEP, and IncBio—an APIP/Logoplaste Innovation Lab initiative to advance Portugal's plastics sector toward a circular economy—which signals strategic intent to align capsule packaging innovation with European circular-economy objectives.

Name

Bicafé

Legal name

BICAFÉ, LDA. – TORREFACÇÃO E COMÉRCIO DE CAFÉ, LDA.

Website

https://bicafecapsulas.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Bicafé is a Portuguese private coffee roaster and capsule manufacturer selling Nespresso, Dolce Gusto, and Delta Q compatible capsules plus its own SUBLIME and ZORRA machine systems, via Iberian e-commerce and B2B office channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Coffee Capsules and Roasted Coffee

NAICS

Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (311920)

SIC

Beverages (2080)

akta.pro primary industry

Single-Serve Coffee (Pods, Capsules) (CRADAHAH)

Keywords

• Compatible coffee capsules
• Coffee roasting services
• Espresso capsules
• Office coffee solutions
• Biodegradable coffee pods

Headquarters

HQ city

São Pedro Da Cova

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. E-commerce Product Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales through the company's e-commerce platform, selling coffee capsules, ground coffee, coffee machines, and accessories. Revenue is generated through individual transactions with prices ranging from approximately €2 to €47 per product.
2. Business/Office Solutions: B2B sales of coffee products and solutions to offices and businesses through dedicated commercial team and corporate accounts.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Bicafé is a Portuguese coffee roasting and capsule manufacturer that produces and sells coffee capsules compatible with Nespresso, Nescafé Dolce Gusto, and Delta Q machines, as well as proprietary capsules for its Bicafé SUBLIME and ZORRA coffee systems. The company also offers whole bean and ground coffee blends, plus complementary items such as sugar sticks and porcelain cups. Distribution is primarily through its own e-commerce site (bicafecapsulas.com) and a dedicated commercial team serving offices.

Product overview

Bicafé is a Portuguese coffee roasting and trading company (Bicafé – Torrefacção e Comércio de Café, Lda.) offering a comprehensive portfolio of coffee products centered on compatible capsules for major coffee machine brands. The product line spans four main capsule categories: Delta Q compatible capsules (Extra Intenso, Stravaganza, Azzurro, Descafeinado), Nescafé Dolce Gusto compatible capsules (Fortíssimo, Espresso, Ristretto, Gourmet, Brasil, and milk-based drinks), Nespresso compatible capsules (standard and biodegradable lines including Ristretto, Forte, Gourmet, Super Forte, Intenso, Decaf), and proprietary capsules for Bicafé's own SUBLIME and ZORRA machines. The portfolio also includes whole bean and ground coffee, office kits combining capsules with paper cups, and complementary accessories like sugar sticks and porcelain cups. Bicafé operates both B2C e-commerce and B2B commercial channels targeting office/professional segments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cápsulas Compatíveis Delta Q Coffee capsules compatible with Delta Q coffee machines, available in multiple intensity levels (Extra Intenso, Stravaganza, Azzurro, Descafeinado) in 10-caps tubes and 100-caps economy packs. Targeted at consumers and offices using Delta Q machines.
• Cápsulas Compatíveis Nescafé Dolce Gusto Coffee and beverage capsules compatible with Nescafé Dolce Gusto machines, including espresso, Fortíssimo, Ristretto, Gourmet, Brasil, and milk-based drinks such as Cappuccino and Chocolate. Targeted at consumers using Dolce Gusto machines.
• Cápsulas Compatíveis Nespresso Coffee capsules compatible with Nespresso machines, featuring standard and biodegradable options across intensity levels from Super Forte to Decaf (including Ristretto Biodegradável, Forte Biodegradável, Gourmet Biodegradável, Decaf Biodegradável). Targeted at consumers seeking Nespresso-compatible capsules, including those prioritizing sustainability.
• Cápsulas Máquina Bicafé SUBLIME Proprietary capsules designed exclusively for the Bicafé SUBLIME coffee machine, available in Office kit configurations with 100 individually wrapped capsules and 100 paper cups (Forte, Cremoso, Aromático, and Descafeinado variants). Targeted at consumers and offices using the Bicafé SUBLIME system.
• Cápsula Máquina Bicafé ZORRA Capsules designed for the Bicafé ZORRA coffee machine, a proprietary machine available for demonstration in the Greater Porto area via the company's commercial team. Targeted at offices and businesses in the Porto region.
• Café em Grão/Moído (Classic) Whole bean and ground coffee blends combining Central American Arabica coffees with Robusta coffees from West Africa, offering distinct aromatic and light flavor profiles for traditional espresso machines. Targeted at consumers who prefer traditional coffee preparation methods.
• Kits Office (Bicafé SUBLIME) Office solution kits designed for Bicafé SUBLIME machines, each containing 100 individually wrapped capsules plus 100 paper cups. Available in Forte, Cremoso, Aromático, and Descafeinado variants at €32.82 per kit. Targeted at offices and businesses seeking bundled workplace coffee supply.

Quantifiable outcome

• Same-day delivery available in Porto area for orders placed before 8h00
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Sonae MCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSonae MC is a partner in the Sustainable Plastics project, an initiative led by Logoplaste Innovation Lab and APIP (Associação Portuguesa da Indústria de Plásticos). The project aims to advance Portugal's plastics sector toward a truly circular economy, contributing to European circular economy objectives of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving resource efficiency, and creating employment.
• CodilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Sustainable Plastics project aimed at advancing circular economy practices in Portugal's plastics industry, contributing to environmental sustainability objectives.
• Bio4plascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Sustainable Plastics initiative focused on developing biological plastics solutions for the circular economy transition.
• PIEPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Sustainable Plastics project contributing expertise in polymer engineering to support circular economy innovation.
• IncBiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Sustainable Plastics project focused on innovation in the bio-based materials sector for sustainable plastic alternatives.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Illy: Illy is a premium Italian espresso brand with its own iperEspresso capsule system. Comparable to Bicafé as a roaster-led capsule player serving the European espresso consumer, though positioned more premium and with global brand recognition.
• Segafredo Zanetti: Segafredo Zanetti is an Italian coffee group active in both foodservice and retail capsules. Comparable to Bicafé as a vertically integrated roaster with capsule offerings targeting the same Southern European at-home and office use cases.
• Lavazza: Lavazza is an Italian coffee incumbent with its own Espresso Point and Lavazza A Modo Mio capsule systems, and increasingly offers compatible third-party capsules. Comparable to Bicafé as a roaster-branded capsule manufacturer serving the European at-home espresso market.
• Melitta: Melitta is a German coffee roaster with a meaningful European capsule/filter-coffee business and is one of the few large incumbents also pushing biodegradable paper-based pods, mirroring Bicafé's sustainable-capsule positioning. Similar product overlap and comparable mid-sized incumbent profile.
• Nestlé Nespresso: Nespresso is the original single-serve capsule platform and the global incumbent Bicafé explicitly targets with compatible capsules. Overlap is direct on product category (aluminum and biodegradable Nespresso-compatible pods) and on consumer use case, though Nespresso is far larger and owns the machine platform.
• Nestlé Dolce Gusto: Nestlé's Dolce Gusto system is one of the three pod platforms Bicafé manufactures compatible capsules for, including milk-based drinks and chocolate beverages. Same product-category and consumer overlap as Bicafé, owned by a global incumbent with vastly larger marketing reach.

Emerging players

• Pact Coffee: Pact Coffee is a UK-based specialty roaster with a strong D2C subscription model and growing B2B office channel. Comparable to Bicafé in business model (online-direct roaster selling to consumers and offices) though operating in the UK market rather than Iberia and focused on whole-bean rather than capsules.

Regional players

• Sical: Sical is a Portuguese coffee roaster serving the domestic and select export markets. Comparable to Bicafé as a domestic Portuguese roaster competing for shelf space and B2B office contracts, but operating primarily through grocery and foodservice rather than a capsule-led D2C model.
• Café Santa Rita: Café Santa Rita is a Portuguese specialty roaster with selective retail and online presence. Comparable to Bicafé as a Portugal-based roaster selling premium coffee products to domestic consumers and businesses, though with a stronger traditional/whole-bean focus and smaller capsule offering.

Direct peers

• Delta Cafés: Delta Cafés is Portugal's leading coffee roaster and owner of the Delta Q pod system. It is the most direct competitor to Bicafé in the Portuguese capsule market, sharing the same retail shelf, B2B office channel, and Portuguese domestic-brand positioning that Bicafé targets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/BICAFE.CAPSULES
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bicafe

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bicafé