A closer look at the region's tea industry. A closer look at the region's tea industry.

Top trends

EXPERT ADVICE

Increasingly, hoteliers are partnering up with category experts (tea, coffee and chocolatiers) to offer their guests a more personalised experience. For example, Sava has partnered with the Kempinski Mall of the Emirates and the JW Marriott Marquis to integrate a retail corner within their lobby lounge managed entirely by a tea sommeliers appointed and trained by our company in an effort to enrich the guest experience and generate a new revenue stream for the hotel.

Ahead of their new premium product launch, Unlilever has also recognised the importance of skilled servers. Lucas Dollfuss, head of The Tea Company by UFS, Middle East said: “We will provide on-site training on how to execute the perfect serve of tea to guests, as well as a website to browse the different tea variants and tea materials. We are seeing that owners and managers of high end restaurants, hotels and business class travel are searching to enhance their guest experience through high quality natural flavours and also care about every detail of the serve.”

HEALTH & WELLBEING

This trend has strongly driven consumption of tea given the perceived health benefits especially of white and green teas. Traditional black tea consumption markets see continuous growth in the green tea and natural infusion segment of the market. According to Olga Cassidy, marketing manager for La Marquise International, this is applicable to both the retail and the hospitality sectors. Government bodies in the region are starting to use new regulations and taxes to clamp down on the consumption of sodas and energy drinks. Dollfuss adds: “Healthy drinks are the perfect alternative. We are seeing that cold brew tea is winning over customers with its smooth taste, lower caffeine levels and hit of antioxidants.”

CONVENIENCE

Although they may enjoy the properties of loose leaf tea, some increasingly time-poor consumers require easier and simpler ways to prepare teas. Premium brands are using silken pyramid tea bags which allow tea afficionados to enjoy the elevated taste of whole leaf teas and infusions presented in a convenient manner with which to infuse and dispose of the product. The ongoing development of tea pods for single serve coffee machines will continue this trend.

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