Update!

Patrick Dempsey Outbids Starbucks for Seattle Coffee Chain; Grey's Anatomy Star New Owner of Tully's

TV actor tweets out, "We got it!" after succeeding in effort to buy the failing local franchise, for a cool $9.15 million

By Gina Serpe Jan 04, 2013 3:37 PMTags
Patrick DempseyTwitter

Patrick Dempsey has successfully saved a Seattle coffee chain from financial life support.

The Grey's Anatomy star has won out in his bid to purchase the previously failing but now McDreamy-owned (buy stock now, is what we're saying) Tully's franchise. The purchase will be made official later this month following a court hearing on the matter, at which point Dempsey will fork over $9.15 million for the privilege of owning the coffee empire.

And you thought your cup of joe was pricey.

"We met the green monster, looked her in the eye, and...SHE BLINKED!" the TV star tweeted of the news. "We got it! Thank you Seattle!"

Ahead of his prevailing in yesterday's bankruptcy auction for the chain, which has 47 locations throughout Washington and California, Dempsey, who was up against the green monster known as Starbucks in his bidding, was updating fans on his journey via Twitter.

"In Seattle, big day tomorrow," he wrote ahead of the sale, alongside a picture of him posing with a Tully's barista. "Hope we pull it off!"

He did indeed. The deal is in place pending a bankruptcy judge formally signing off during a hearing set for Jan. 11.

At which point, the new best part of waking up? Will be having some McDreamy-approved brew in your cup.

UPDATE: Patrick Dempsey has released a more formal statement on his winning bid: "I'm thrilled that we won and I'm even more excited about saving Tully's Coffee and its hundreds of jobs. Tully's is a great company with committed employees, and with its base in Seattle, one of the world's greatest cities, I'm confident we will be able to succesfully build the brand and help grow the economy. Seattle has been very good to me over my career, and I am honored to have the privilege to own Tully's and work closely with the company's employees."

UPDATE 2: On Jan. 11, a bankruptcy judge approved the sale of Tully's to Dempsey's Global Barista's LLC after a rival bidder filed an objection. "I've been deeply humbled by the outpouring of support from the city of Seattle and am very proud to be a new business owner in this amazing city," Dempsey said in a statement. "We have a lot to accomplish over the next few months and years, and I am excited to now call Seattle my second home."