'This sale is just the consequence of a long and gradual walk away'

There are any number of factors that might contribute to an overseas investor choosing to pull out of owning a stud in Britain at present – not least Brexit, Covid-19 and woefully low levels of prize-money.

However, Andreas Jacobs is keen to stress that the reasons behind his family selling the successful Newsells Park Stud in Hertfordshire to Graham Smith-Bernal in a lock, stock and barrel deal were purely personal.

Jacobs describes the decision as logical in the context of how the family’s involvement in breeding, funded by its world-famous coffee brand and other business holdings, unfolded throughout Europe and beyond.