New coffee on the market

System

A family member has just started importing coffee from Italy, it is arriving reguarly on a monthly basis, so it is fresh. Can anyone give any tips on entering the market for me to pass on? Thanks heaps

nzroaster

Give away lots of freebies (i.e. machines, grinders, cups, umbrellas, windbreaks) this is the only way you can sell STALE coffee. Even if it arrives weekly it is still being shipped from Italy, whats the time from roaster to espresso machine? And I thought Australia had enough stale coffee ::)

MrNang

second that - why not buy from a local contract roaster. Not mentioning names, but I know of 2 reasonably successful importers of italian coffee into   australia that are looking to shift to local roasting (strangely enough it will cost them more) - anecdotally you can start off with a fresh shipment of beans and then standards seem to lapse, you also have large investments of capital upfront, irregular deliveries, and often it is hard to guage order quantities in growth so invariably you end up with stale coffee or stock outs and end up paying airshipments to satisfy orders. Too many italian imports in the market already so there is minimal points of differentiation and Australias a hard market to crack with imported coffee (in general the market thinks we do it better in Australia!). It would be different for non volatile products with shelf lfes greater than 30 days.

nzroaster

Not mentioning names, but I know of 2 reasonably successful importers of italian coffee into

fattylateplease

How do you manage your contract roasting NZ and how does the cost compare to the final product? Interested in the concept.

askthecoffeeguy

I had a 'top ten' coffee at the European on Spring Street, recently, and they use an Italian product. When I asked Con about it he told me that they roast to order, then fly the product out here, and its here in much less than 30 days from roasting. I couldn't find fault with the product, but the costs associated with bringing it into the country fresh must be tremendous! I say forget the Bali Nine - why not start up a clandestine coffee importation ring from Italy, where mule clients could smuggle in a kilo or two at a time, and Mokbel could be the pin-up boy? P

nzroaster

How do you manage your contract roasting NZ and how does the cost compare to the final product? Interested in the concept.

Basically it is hassle free and I charge accordingly. I charge for a bulk roasted, or packed product. I do not look after the accounts, I roast the order when I recieve it. The only work I do prior is blend developement. It takes a few things off my plate. 1) customers service - I have 1 customer and they have many 2) brand integrity - My only concern is that the quality is consistent, they manage how their brand is represented in the market place. 3) stock/time management - They order, I roast. They take care of their customers from there on. Price depends on the following: 1) coffees quality 2) quantities 3) packaging ie bulk / packed / labeled (some customers get it in 10Kg boxes and package it themselves, some get me to pack it in 250gm to 3Kg packs, some send me their labels and I do the lot.) Compared to a wholesale customer the price allows a contract client to add an apropriate markup to cover the cost of running their bussiness. I have the following contract customers: 1) Coffee Brands (ie. distributors of their own brand) 2) Franchises (once again its brand awareness for them) The quantities required are not huge to do this, but you have to be willing to accept that you are essentially running your own coffee bussiness. All the knowledge and ideas need to be yours, all the service is provided by you. All i do is moniter quality. If you would like to know more, pm or email me.