Cross-Channel Beverage Menu Prevalence
Percent offering
When analyzing which beverages are offered across multiple channels, data outliers include obvious trends such as the prevalence of packaged beverages in c-stores. College & university (C&U) overindexed on smoothies and specialty coffee drinks.
| Beverage | C-stores | QSR/fast casual | C&U | Hospitals | Total* |
| Dispensed regular coffee | 98% | 57% | 94% | 95% | 89% |
| Packaged soft drinks | 97% | 51% | 82% | 95% | 82% |
| Dispensed soft drinks | 86% | 87% | 96% | 74% | 73% |
| Dispensed iced tea | 65% | 81% | 86% | 72% | 72% |
| Packaged energy drinks | 98% | 23% | 71% | 60% | 58% |
| Packaged coffee drinks | 95% | 3% | 64% | 53% | 50% |
| Made-to-order specialty coffee drinks | 16% | 25% | 63% | 42% | 31% |
| Made-to-order smoothies | 13% | 30% | 57% | 27% | 27% |
| Dispensed hot tea | 27% | 17% | 32% | 19% | 25% |
Source: FARE 2014 State of Foodservice Study
*Total includes nursing homes, long-term care, senior living
Cross-Channel Beverage Growth Expectations
Overall, c-store operators seem more optimistic about beverage sales growth than their QSR/fast-casual and non-commercial brethren.
Which two of the following foodservice beverage categories do you believe have the highest sales growth potential in the next year?
| Beverage | C-stores | QSR/Fast casual | C&U | Hospitals | Total* |
| Made-to-order specialty coffee drinks | 19% | 33% | 42% | 28% | 28% |
| Packaged energy drinks | 42% | 10% | 28% | 18% | 24% |
| Made-to-order smoothies | 15% | 31% | 34% | 19% | 23% |
| Packaged soft drinks | 24% | 6% | 13% | 34% | 19% |
| Dispensed regular coffee | 24% | 10% | 11% | 16% | 17% |
| Dispensed iced tea | 19% | 31% | 7% | 11% | 14% |
| Dispensed soft drinks | 25% | 21% | 1% | 12% | 12% |
| Packaged coffee drinks | 17% | 0% | 18% | 4% | 10% |
| Dispensed hot tea | 1% | 6% | 7% | 1% | 3% |
| None of the above | 4% | 23% | 17% | 24% | 22% |
Source: FARE 2014 State of Foodservice Study
*Total includes nursing homes, long-term care, senior living
Coffee Menu Importance: Retail vs. Restaurant
Year ending December 2013
Traditional coffee has the highest importance at c-stores, while specialty coffee is still highest at QSRs.
| Channel | Menu importance*** |
| Traditional coffee | |
| C-store | 9.6% |
| Food & drug | 4.3% |
| QSR | 7.2% |
| Specialty coffee | |
| C-store | 3.4% |
| Food & drug | 1.7% |
| QSR | 6.6% |
Source: The NPD Group/CREST
***Percent of meals/snacks that include item
Day-Part Distribution
Most away-from-home serving incidences for coffee happen in the morning, with 68% of brewed-coffee servings, for example, being poured at that day-part, according to Datassential. However, while more than one-half of iced- and frozen-coffee incidences occur in the morning, a respectable percentage—or one-third—happen midday.
| Coffee type | Morning | Midday | Evening |
| Brewed coffee | 68% | 24% | 8% |
| Specialty coffee | 60% | 27% | 13% |
| Iced coffee | 55% | 34% | 11% |
| Frozen coffee | 53% | 33% | 13% |
| Iced tea | 26% | 54% | 20% |
| Hot tea | 52% | 31% | 16% |
Source: Datassential
NEXT: Beverage Use & Traffic Drivers
Away-From-Home Beverage Use
According to a December 2013 sample of research from Datassential’s Buzz Coffee & Tea Tracker, which tracks a sample of 12,000 consumers on their coffee and tea preferences, 45% of consumers’ daily beverage incidences away from home included brewed coffee. This compares to 41% for bottled water, 34% for juice and 33% for carbonated soft drinks (CSDs).
| Daily beverage incidence | |
| Tap water/ice water/glass of water | 55% |
| Brewed coffee/black coffee | 45% |
| Bottled water | 41% |
| Juice/juice drink | 34% |
| Regular carbonated soft drink | 33% |
| Milk | 32% |
| Iced tea | 26% |
| Diet carbonated soft drink | 24% |
| Hot tea | 18% |
| Beer | 13% |
| Punch/lemonade/limeade | 12% |
| Specialty coffee drink | 12% |
| Iced coffee | 11% |
| Wine | 11% |
| Sports drink | 10% |
| Hot chocolate | 9% |
| Smoothie | 8% |
| Energy drink | 8% |
| Milkshake | 7% |
| Ice-blended/frozen coffee/frappe | 7% |
| Spirits/cocktails/liquor | 7% |
| Slushie/granita | 3% |
Source: Datassential
Venue Selection Criteria
One-half of participants in Datassential’s Buzz survey said convenience was the top criteria in choosing their away-from-home brewed-coffee source, with 27% citing price and 25% quality.
Which of the following best describe why you chose to purchase your brewed coffee where you did?
| Criteria | Percentage |
| Convenience | 50% |
| Best price | 27% |
| Best quality | 25% |
| Able to customize beverage | 17% |
| Environment/ambiance | 16% |
| Best variety | 12% |
| Loyalty program | 6% |
| Gift card/prepaid card | 4% |
Source: Datassential
C-Store Hot-Dispensed-Beverage Sales Breakdown
Nearly a quarter of c-store hot-dispensed sales come from specialty drinks, which includes channel differentiator and seasonal favorite dispensed cappuccinos, according to Technomic.
Source: Technomic Inc.
NEXT: Condiment & Coffee Preferences
Condiment Preference
In away-from-home servings of coffee, condiments are a popular add-in, included in nearly three-quarters of incidences, according to Datassential research. The most popular condiment is creamer, included in 66% of servings, followed by a sweetener at 48%.
For flavored creamers, consumers’ favorite variety is vanilla, with nearly 30% ranking it the most appealing offer, followed by hazelnut and caramel. Just as with flavored coffee, women found flavored creamers more appealing than men did.
| Creamer flavor appeal | |||
| Flavor | Total | Male | Female |
| Vanilla/French vanilla | 29% | 23% | 37% |
| Hazelnut | 20% | 15% | 25% |
| Caramel | 19% | 14% | 25% |
| Irish cream | 17% | 15% | 20% |
| Chocolate | 16% | 12% | 21% |
| Amaretto | 12% | 10% | 14% |
| Pumpkin | 12% | 8% | 16% |
| Peppermint | 9% | 7% | 11% |
Source: Datassential
| Condiment | Percentage of incidences |
| Creamer | 66% |
| Sweetener (sugar, sweetener, etc.) | 48% |
| Flavored syrup | 5% |
| Powdered hot chocolate | 3% |
| None | 24% |
Source: Datassential
Roast Preferences
Percent responding “appealing” or “very appealing”
Consumers favor a middle road when it comes to the type of brewed coffee they drink away from home, according to Datassential research. For coffee-roast types, consumers in the Buzz survey rated medium roasts as most appealing, followed by dark roasts.
| Roast type | Appeal |
| Medium | 32% |
| Dark | 29% |
| French | 23% |
| Italian | 14% |
| Light | 14% |
| European | 14% |
| Blonde | 10% |
| City | 8% |
Source: Datassential
Cross-Channel Share of Hot-Beverage Sales
C-stores commanded a larger share of volume sales (15%) than dollar sales in 2013, likely indicating that c-stores serve less expensive coffee.
| Dollar sales | |
| Channel | Percent share |
| Limited-service restaurants | 47% |
| Full-service restaurants | 16% |
| C-stores | 11% |
| Vending/office coffee service | 10% |
| Travel/leisure | 6% |
| Other | 10% |
Source: Datassential
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.