"Even with Low Prices, the Taste Rivals Cafes" Convenience Store Coffee Battle

Customers are purchasing CU's GET Coffee.

원본보기 아이콘

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] As inflation drives consumers to convenience stores, convenience stores are targeting consumers by improving the quality of their coffee, such as changing their own coffee beans and machines.

According to the industry on the 19th, CU's instant coffee GET coffee is a bestseller ranked second in total product sales volume following cup ice. It sold 168 million cups last year alone. CU has undergone a major renewal, sequentially introducing the fully automatic coffee machine from Italy's La Cimbali, which holds the number one market share in the global commercial coffee machine market, to all stores to realize a differentiated coffee taste. The coffee beans were also changed. Previously, Colombian and Tanzanian beans were roasted separately in a 7:3 ratio, but now fresh beans from Colombia, Brazil, and Nicaragua are blended in a 50:25:25 ratio and medium dark roasted. Additionally, two types of beans can be operated simultaneously, and along with GET coffee, a new menu item, Illy Americano, made with Intenso dark roasted beans from the Italian coffee brand Illy, is introduced.

GS25 had a special order from Heo Yeonsu, Vice Chairman of GS Retail, to improve coffee taste. They introduced Swiss coffee machines costing over 13 million won per store at the company's expense. They also started sourcing beans from famous origins, adjusting the blend of beans from four renowned coffee regions?Colombia, Guatemala, Brazil, and Ethiopia?over about five months. As a result, GS25 recorded 190 million cups of coffee sales in 2021, and sales in June increased by 33.4% compared to the same period last year.

Seven Eleven's Seven Cafe is notable for being the first in the industry to use fully automatic drip extraction coffee. It uses 100% Arabica beans, uniformly roasted at high temperatures above 600 degrees Celsius. Seven Cafe sold 85 million cups last year, and sales in June increased by 30% compared to the same period last year.

Emart24 launched IPresso. It dark roasts the highest NY2 grade of Brazilian Cerrado beans and extracts coffee using the Italian luxury machine SECO Grandea. Although a latecomer in the convenience store coffee market, its coffee sales growth rate in June rose 36% year-on-year. Emart24 also operates the industry's first convenience store with an on-site barista. Here, customers can choose between Kenya AA and Colombia Huila Supremo beans when purchasing coffee.

An industry insider said, "As customers seeking affordable convenience store coffee increase due to high inflation and other factors, convenience stores are also trying to differentiate themselves with better quality coffee."

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.