Boncafé Middle East sales & marketing executive Axelle Bouquet speaks about the trends and challenges surrounding coffee in the region - and why baristas are the 'new wave of sommeliers'.
How popular would you say coffee is in the Middle East region?
Coffee is extremely popular in the Middle East region. It is an integral part of Arab society. Born in Ethiopia, it came to the region from Africa in the early 16th century — first to Yemen and then to Mecca, Cairo, Syria, and then, in the mid-16th century, to Turkey.
It is an answer to various purposes; coffee shops used to be a forum for political debates, having a cup of coffee with an elder family member is a sign of respect in certain families and if you have been working in the Middle East for long enough, you won’t deny its importance while conducting business and maintaining good relationships with customers and prospective clients.
Which kind is the most popular?
Consumers are increasingly interested in authentic high-quality products, leading to a stronger demand for premium products within standard fresh ground coffee and standard ground coffee pods. Another fact we noticed when conducting coffee tasting for new clients, is that most of them first ask to try espresso and black coffee, and then move to latte and cappuccino.
From our coffee options, our two best-sellers are Café Espressa, which is our top gourmet espresso composed of 100% Arabica beans from South America, and Grande Cru, also composed of 100% Arabica beans but from single Brazilian origin.
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Is sourcing coffee a challenge?
Sourcing coffee isn’t a challenge for us. We have our own plantations in Hawai, Brazil and Vietnam, so we are not really experiencing obstacles with regards to supply chain. What could be a challenge is to meet the requirements and regulations of the various countries we export to.
What kind of training is required to ensure proper handling of coffee?
To name a few: technical capabilities of our service technicians, operations, cleaning procedure of the machines, coffee knowledge, latte art training, etc.
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