The hot beverage market continues to grow, with over two-thirds of coffee consumption being out of home. QSRs have dramatically increased product offerings to include more hot beverages. McDonald’s, for one, has increased their McCafé offerings helping them increase their same store sales for 55 consecutive months. Even convenience stores are upgrading their hot beverage selection to try to compete with the quick service options.
Specialty Hot Beverage Operators currently make up 5% of the consumer spends in the Limited Service Market. In terms of number of operators, independents (1 to 9 units) and large chains (501 + units) dominate the hot beverage market. The medium size coffee and tea companies (10-500 units) only account for 8% of the market, whereas independents constitute 53% of the industry.
The hot beverage market doesn’t seem exciting on paper. After all, the chance a prisoner opts for a cup of coffee as a last meal over a juicy steak is pretty slim. However, a $14.4bn market in a declining economy is simply something manufacturers cannot, and should not ignore. The hot beverage market is one of the few markets that have shown continued growth over the past 4 years. The global market for hot beverages (coffee and tea) is forecasted to reach $69.77bn in value and 10.57m tonnes in volume by the year 2015.
According to Cathy Kearns, general manager at CHD Expert, “We have seen independent and chain coffee shops continue to dominate new restaurant net growth in North America. The Hot Beverage market transactions have nearly tripled between 2000 and 2011 whereas the Limited Service Foodservice transactions have decreased by 7% during the same period.”
Future growth in worldwide coffee and tea industries is expected to rely on a few key factors – quality, health and convenience. Widespread awareness of health benefits associated with hot tea continues to drive the beverage to new heights of popularity. Hot tea is one of the healthy beverages recommended by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. So go ahead and have that second helping of fries, just make sure to wash it down with a nice cup of hot tea.
Gourmet coffee continues to be a significant portion (37%) of total coffee consumed; indicating that consumers want to maintain coffee quality despite the economy. The constant demand for Coffee had helped it sustain extraordinary sales levels even in an uncertain economy. As the economy recovers, rising levels of affluence, consumer awareness and greater per capita consumption in developing economies, is slated to accelerate future growth. No matter the consumer age group, coffee consumption is on the rise:
An increase in consumption among younger drinkers demonstrates strong category loyalty, which suggests a solid customer base for future growth.
Source: CHD Expert
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