Americans Are Running Away From Home… Brewed Coffee

Premium Coffee Cravings Boost Coffeehouse and Donut Shop Sales; Store-Bought Coffee Feels Negative EffectsChicago (March 13, 2006)- American consumers are turning to premium coffee taste, while simultaneously turning off their home coffeepots. A new report from Mintel shows that premium coffee is driving success for national coffeehouses, donut shops and quick-service restaurants, while causing a downturn in food, drug, and mass-merchandise (FDM) sales of coffee. Coffeehouses have more than doubled their U.S. sales in the last five years to an estimated $8.3 billion. In another five years, the market is expected to reach a staggering $18.8 billion. As a result of this growth, store-bought coffee manufacturers are feeling the negative effects in their sales. According to the National Coffee Association (NCA), the popularity of traditional coffee, described as consumer-brewed coffee, had been declining through 2004. With one coffeehouse for nearly every 14,000 Americans, coffeehouses are moving coffee sales away from FDM retailers. Mintel’s exclusive consumer research reports that 35 percent of those who visited a coffeehouse in the last week purchased coffee beans there; more than 67 percent of coffeehouse visitors listed quality at the top of the needs list.