Specialty Coffee Retailer is a publication for owners, managers and employees of retail outlets that sell specialty coffee. Its scope includes best sales practices, supplies, business trends and anything else to assist the small coffee retailer.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/60649
Food boosts Caribou results No. 2 specialty chain does well on Wall St. and online Increased coffee prices didn't stop Caribou Coffee from exceeding earnings expectations this quarter, thanks in part to an expanded food menu. Caribou reported adjusted net earnings for the fourth quarter of $2.8 million on sales of $92.5 million. The sales were 19 percent higher than the fourth quarter of last year, and about 5 percent higher than analysts' expectations. One of the keys to that growth was same-store sales, which were up 5.6 percent over the fourth quarter of last year. In a conference call with analysts, Caribou executives attributed that growth to increased menu options for both breakfast and lunch. Another growth driver was Caribou's commercial division, which comprises ground coffee sold in grocery stores and other retail outlets. Sales in this division, which constitutes a quarter of Caribou's total revenue, soared 77.5 percent, thanks in large part to good sales for pods for the single-serve Keurig brewing system. Caribou hopes to continue this single- serve success with Vue, the new, more sophisticated single-serve brewer being brought out by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, marketers of the Keurig. Caribou announced in late February that it would roll out pods for the Vue filled with both its regular coffee and Starlight, its new light roast. In another piece of good news, Caribou is touting a study that shows it is recommended online more than any other major coffee chain. The study, by social media marketing agency Zócalo Group, analyzed more than 4 million online "conversations" over a 30- day period, looking for references to coffee chains. It found that while Starbucks was the chain mentioned most often, Caribou received the most recommendations, in one out of 20 conversations. Dunkin' Donuts placed second and McDonald's, third. Prices tumble as record crop predicted Arabica retreats further from last May's high Prospects of a record global crop have sent Arabica prices retreating still further from their peaks of last May. The commodity price for Arabica sank to $1.851 a pound on March 8 before edging upward slightly. Prices have sunk more than 40 percent since breaking the $3 a pound barrier in May 2011. The possibility of a record global Arabica crop, with increased supplies, has dampened the enthusiasm of speculators for coffee as an investment vehicle, depressing prices. An analyst at CoffeeNetwork, a subsidiary of INTL FC Stone, predicted that the world Arabica crop for the 2012/13 growing season will come in at 9.63 million tons, which would be a 7.5 percent increase from 2011/12. Harvard health blog: Enjoy your coff ee It's acceptable, if not recommended The favorable aspects of coffee are enough to make it acceptable from a health viewpoint, if not exactly recommended, according to a blog post on the Harvard Medical School website. The post, titled "What is it about coffee?", states that "study results suggestive of health benefits from coffee keep on coming in." These include lower risks of depression (for women), prostate cancer and stroke. However, the post cautions that coffee, which it calls "the most commonly consumed psychoactive drug in the world," can influence behavior in ways similar to cocaine and amphetamines, and has negative effects that can include raising blood pressure, hardening arteries, and possibly raising insulin and cholesterol. The bottom line: Although coffee can't be recommended as a health drink, coffee drinkers "can relax and enjoy their habit." Krups names best U.S. coff eehouses Online contest covers 10 cities Krups, the coffee and coffee equipment supplier, has released its annual list of the best coffeehouses across the nation. The Krups Best Brew awards were determined by a public vote and call for 6 | April 2012 • www.specialty-coffee.com