Costa Coffee opened its drive-thru at Waterloo Park in Waterlooville on Thursday 22 October 2026, the first of three national brands to trade on the site. The coffee chain says the unit brings up to 16 jobs, with a KFC due on 26 October and an Aldi on 26 November.
The new Costa sits at 3 Waterloo Park, PO7 7XW, on a scheme built by developer Hargreaves next to the existing Lidl and McDonald’s. Work on the plot began in January 2026. Once finished, it will have three separate buildings around a shared car park of 169 spaces. Costa’s store finder lists the unit as a drive-thru with delivery and click and collect. On its first full day of trading, the listing showed a 9pm close.
Up to 16 jobs and a drive-thru format
Costa confirmed the 22 October opening date to the Portsmouth daily The News on 14 October. A company spokesperson said the drive-thru would create up to 16 roles, including baristas. Costa has not given the size of the unit. It has also not said whether the company runs the site itself or through a franchise partner. The store finder does not name an operator either. That is not a detail: Costa’s estate includes franchised shops, which its own store finder labels as such in places, alongside the units it manages itself.
A crowded coffee map in Waterlooville
Waterloo Park already has plenty of Costa close by. A search for Waterlooville on Costa’s store finder returns ten Costa outlets within about a mile of the town centre. They include the shop in the Precinct, a branch at Wellington Retail Park and Costa points inside Tesco Express, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons Daily and One Stop shops. The Wellington Retail Park branch is less than a mile from the new site. The store finder lists no other drive-thru nearer than Portsmouth, about four miles south. Competition is growing too: The News reported in June that Starbucks had applied for signage on a vacant unit at Wellington Retail Park.
KFC and Aldi follow within five weeks
Costa is the first of three. KFC is due to open its restaurant on Elettra Avenue on Monday 26 October. It will be run by franchisee K&Z Holdings, and the brand says it is its first project with Hargreaves. Aldi follows on Thursday 26 November, one of the stores the discounter is opening across the UK before Christmas. For Hargreaves, the three brands make up the second phase of Waterloo Park, and further plots remain to be let.
Good to know
Havant Borough Council approved the Waterloo Park scheme, application APP/21/00399, in October 2024. Residents had pushed for leisure uses instead, and the council noted that a large part of the wider allocation remained available should a leisure operator come forward.
What remains to be confirmed
Several details are still open. Costa has not published the floor area, the opening hours beyond those on its store finder, or the company that runs the unit. Landscaping and tree planting at Waterloo Park are due to continue over the coming months. The next fixed dates are KFC on 26 October and Aldi on 26 November, after which Hargreaves expects to turn to the remaining plots on the site.
