Newly launched eXpresso PLUS offers a fresh alternative to the UK On-the-Go coffee market. As part of the Freedom Refreshments Group it brings over 50 years’ of experience in the hot beverage market and boasts customers across a range of industries including gardening, retail, baking, healthcare, hospitality and many more.
Garden centre catering has grown over 50% in recent years, and now accounts for as much as 20% of garden centre turnover with this figure expected to rise to 90% over the coming year*. And although UK coffee consumption has reached an all-time high with 70 million cups drank daily it doesn’t stop at coffee. The UK firmly remains a nation of tea drinkers with double the number of cups drank daily at 165 million. On top of this the UK herbal and specialist tea market has seen significant growth of over 83% in recent years. In todays’ competitive market providing the complete hot beverage solution is key to attracting and retaining a loyal customer base.
The key benefit of working with eXpresso PLUS is that it offers a tailored solution dependent on the needs of individual customers. With a comprehensive range of machines and surrounds to suit virtually any space eXpresso PLUS stocks everything from self-serve low maintenance towers for the garden centre to traditional espresso machines for the café. It also offers a full range of fresh and dried ingredients including Bean2Cup and soluble coffee products, fresh leaf tea, hot chocolate and soup. On top of that in partnering with many of the world’s leading consumer branding including LavAzza, Nescafé, PG tips, Knorr and many more it gives you the chance to instantly attract brand loyal customers, ensuring optimal sales opportunities for you and your business. Additionally, you are provided with marketing and promotional support through a range of point of sale materials for your outlet. As well as this each brand partner spends millions of pounds each year in consumer marketing, advertising spend that benefits your business as every advert for them is also an advert for you!
eXpresso PLUS offers a range of finance options including free and pay vend solution. Depending on your individual needs the self-serve machines offer a range of payment methods including coin, note and card payment making it a quick and convenient service to your customers. And the best part is you only need to sell 6 cups a day to break even!
In recent months eXpresso PLUS has launched solutions in various sectors across the UK. A key new customer has been Blackstock Farm in West Sussex, see pictures below. It boasts two wedding venues, a childrens recreational area and a café onsite and there has long been an appetite for coffee at the farm. Before launching the LavAzza solution it had worked with some other providers both branded and unbranded but never felt entirely satisfied with the service provided. Partnering with eXpresso PLUS means it can use the same supplier for all branded machines across the business including in the café and the self-serve tower in the recreational area. Since installation it has seen consistent growth in sales with one of the key factors being that the tower requires minimal maintenance and no resource to operate it.
Manish Shah, Director, eXpresso PLUS told GTN Food Xtra: "‘The response to our products has been great. The key to our success has been a combination of providing tailored solutions to our customers as well as the brands partners we work with. Consumer tastes vary in different areas of the country so it’s important to offer a flexible and complete hot drink solution including tea. By giving customers the choice we put the control back in the customers hand and ensure we don’t offer a one size fits all solution".
