Covid-19 has changed the way we drink coffee. With cafés closing their doors during lockdown, people are investing in the right tools and equipment to become a home barista.
We asked Petros Malousis, Operations Manager at Coffee Lab, to tell us about what their customers have been looking for in this new era and what kinds of businesses he is looking to (virtually!) meet with at The European Coffee Symposium 2020.
What main shift have you noticed since the start of the covid-19 pandemic when it comes to customer behavior?
The pandemic clearly affected the behavior of customers in the stores, as the consumer began to distrust local stores and began preferring popular coffee brands in the market, knowing that they all take precautionary measures against Covid-19 in order to receive a proper product.
Do you think there are trends that Covid-19 has accelerated/decelerated, and if so, what are these?
The pandemic has led consumers to buy home coffee machines, which is why we saw many coffee companies invest in machines to produce coffee capsules and packaged coffee for home use.
Have there been any surprise spikes in demand in terms of products?
In our stores, there was a huge increase in sales of our bags of 200g coffee and the sales of our single origin coffee capsules increased by 150%.
What – if any – changes do you think are here to stay?
Of course the changes are here to stay as the consumer is now trained to buy and make coffee at home. The pandemic has given consumers time to search, learn and try many different types and methods of coffee. I believe that the next evolution of coffee will be the “home barista”.
What would you love to discover at the European Coffee Symposium 2020?
Since CoffeeLab is constantly growing and after the opening of stores in Greece, Cyprus and Egypt, I would like to find partners who will be able to support our effort, share our passion and together create something special and fresh in the consumer’s consciousness.
For more information or to apply for a place for The European Coffee Symposium 2020, click here.
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