It’s no understatement to say that coffee is big business, with no sign of diminishing. Most major traditional coffee beverages—such as hot regular coffee, cold regular coffee and espresso shots—have all increased in popularity over the last two years, according to Technomic’s 2016 Bakery & Coffee Café Consumer Trend Report.
Coffee is everywhere. Freshly brewed coffee can be found in grocery stores, at convenience stores, on college campuses and even in the lobby of the local hospital.
With coffee being so ubiquitous, savvy operators have moved beyond simply offering a cup of joe and have turned their coffee bars into neighborhood meeting places—the so-called “third place,” beyond home and work.
Customers who think of their local coffee cafes as social centers are willing to pay more for their coffee. The Technomic report found that 32% of respondents who frequent coffee cafes prefer a premium coffee blend over a standard blend. That number goes even higher, to 38%, for those who patronize bakery cafes, making the profit potential for operators clear.
For today’s upscale coffee consumer, though, the design in the coffee-making process must be just as sleek and modern as the rest of the operation. “People are looking for coffee equipment to fit into the styling of the restaurant,” says Bob Pierce, senior vice president of the Americas for BUNN®. “They want it to be cosmetically appealing to their guests.”
This led BUNN to develop its new Infusion Series of brewers. These brewers combine consistent, robust performance with sleek new design. It starts on the outside, where soft, inviting curves flow smoothly into angled tops and chamfered edges. There’s a contrast between light and dark colors in the machine designs, which means it can easily fit into almost any concept.
But besides great looks, what the Infusion Series delivers is the “best result in the cup.” Infusion Series technology allows for more than 20 brewing recipes and three batch sizes (0.5, 1 and 1.5 gallons) from just one single footprint. The exclusive Peak Extraction™ sprayhead provides the ultimate in uniform extraction.
“We’re putting new technology into the equipment, making it much more interactive and easy for the customer to engage with,” says Pierce. A USB port makes programming easy. “We have the ability to put freshness timers on an operator’s smart device. So, if a server is coming up to its freshness expiration time and needs to be replaced, or if it has run out of product, they get a warning to change that product out,” he says. The Infusion Series is compatible with the proprietary BUNNLink® system, providing remote monitoring and troubleshooting via web page, tablet or smartphone.
Find out more about the BUNN Infusion Series at www.bunn.com/infusion-series/soft-heat.
This post is sponsored by BUNN