Coffee, as H & C News readers well know, cannot be neglected by any hospitality business today: it’s important not only because more and more customers expect good quality, but also because it attracts significant revenue in its own right.
H & C News was therefore pleased to have the opportunity to meet Ian McDonald of Nespresso UK to find out more about how Nespresso sees the business to business market in the UK, and its development.
Nespresso
Nestlé Nespresso SA is a pioneer and market leader in high quality portioned premium coffee, and has a presence in more than 50 countries, with 5,500 employees, and a global retail network of over 215 exclusive boutiques.
Its London outlet on Regent Street not only presents Nespresso products with the style and sophistication that you would expect in such a location, it also enables customers to sample different coffees and formats guided by knowledgeable, professional staff.
Overall, around 80% of Nespresso’s business is with the ‘in home’ market: that’s around £2.4 billion worldwide each year, and growing. That level of ‘premium’ business is also influential for its business to business activity: drinking quality coffee at home results in recommendations to friends and family – and also to colleagues at work.
Nespresso in the UK
The UK is a growing £100 million market for Nespresso, with B2B sales around 20% of the total and also expanding. Top end hotels (Nespresso supplies around 30% of the UK’s 5-star hotels), restaurants and gastropubs, as well as offices, are the major client sectors – serviced through direct relationships with Nespresso, rather than through intermediaries.
For all its profile and visibility in the market, Nespresso recognises that there remains considerable potential to grow this business. As you’d expect, however, of a ‘premium’ product offering, it is highly selective about its promotional activities. For example, it was recently the sole coffee provider at the BMW PGA Golf Championships at Wentworth: an event where the visitors and guests are ‘on profile’ for its products.
Why choose Nespresso?
There are good reasons why 5-star establishments select Nespresso. Quality – of course – is at the heart of them:
- Range and quality of coffees – eight varieties of ‘Grand Crus’ coffees. Nespresso rightly prides itself on its expertise and demanding standards where sourcing coffee is concerned.
- Capsule system: the coffee is packed in a laminated aluminium capsule ensuring protection from air, light and moisture – guaranteeing quality
- Efficiency: the capsules result in consistent quality with optimum efficiency and cost control
- Coffee machines: streamlined design and state of the art technology ensure that coffee is delivered simply and quickly – whether for an espresso, latte, cappuccino or other recipe.
- Training: extensive training programmes are available for baristas, chefs and sommeliers, and include such elements as matching spirits to coffee – guidance that guests increasingly value.
- Sustainability: Nespresso’s Triple A Sustainable Quality Programme works with Rainforest Alliance to help farmers on the path to sustainability, and is now responsible for 80% of its coffee. Aluminium capsules are collected for recycling, and energy efficiency is designed in to Nespresso coffee machines.
High-volume establishments
Until now, Nespresso coffee machines have been able to service use in the home or hotel bedroom, or locations requiring hundreds of coffees served over the course of a month – but not genuinely high-volume establishments.
Now, Nespresso has introduced the Aguila – its first machine dedicated to meeting both the quality and volume demands of high-volume establishments.
Aguila easily serves bespoke hot and cold coffee beverages, with four extraction heads working simultaneously to enable front-of-house personnel to increase capacity during peak hours.
And Aguila users benefit from a high level of autonomy to manage high volumes of coffee preparation in their establishments. An internet connection via a SIM card enables online tracking of the machine’s maintenance needs. The machine also benefits from its daily semi-automatic cleaning and rinsing system, at the simple touch of a button.
Sustainability is a high priority for Nespresso, which is why Aguila enters ‘energy saving’ mode after 30 minutes of inactivity and “maximum energy saving mode” after a longer period of inactivity.
Customer support and training
As indicated above, Nespresso aims to provide a ‘premium’ service: whether it’s for coffee machines, quality of coffee, advice, support, or training.
Customers are encouraged to use the expertise available to them: take the example of Jonray and Peter Sanchez-Iglesias, who run Michelin-starred restaurant Casamia in Bristol, and have been serving Nespresso coffee to their guests for 4 years now.
Jonray and Peter are taking part in the Nespresso Coffee Sommelier Programme this year, which involves top chefs being trained in the art of coffee tasting and pairing, acquiring additional coffee expertise, and assisting them in the task of facilitating coffee culture at their restaurants.
The brothers said: “A massive part of the ethos here at Casamia is innovation and striving to produce the best dishes. Coffee is the last course on the menu and it has to be exceptional so that customers are left feeling inspired and excited about eating here again. The Nespresso machine has helped us achieve a great lasting impression with our coffee. We are always intrigued by the latest gadgets and technology, and it is testament to Nespresso that we have been using their coffee machine for four years.”
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