Brief:
- Coca-Cola’s Costa Coffee system this year got Briggo, a start-up that lets mobile users purchase coffee from automated kiosks, and is now rebranding it as Costa Coffee BaristaBot, the Austin American-Statesman reported. The terms of the deal weren’t divulged.
- The kiosks, which can make 100 coffee beverages an hour from entire beans, fresh dairy, and premium syrups, accept mobile orders and have a touchscreen tablet. Briggo installs the kiosks in highly trafficked spots like airports, medical and academic facilities, business offices, retailers, and grocery stores.
- The investment consists of Briggo Coffee Hauses that serves hot and iced coffee and teas in a number of consumer places, together with the business’s innovation and expertise, a Coca-Cola representative told the newspaper. The Costa Coffee BaristaBot app is complimentary to download from Google Play and Apple’s App Shop.
Insight:
Coca-Cola’s acquisition of Briggo is a sign that the soft-drink giant sees possible in automated foodservice innovations that are integrated with mobile gadgets. The business traditionally has made item distribution a key part of its sales method, recognizing that when customers are thirsty, they’ll usually select what’s quickly readily available.
That strategy has progressed to not only consist of vending makers, however likewise smart beverage dispensers that let clients tailor a soft-drink without tapping on a touchscreen. Amidst issues about coronavirus infections, the business this year updated its interactive Freestyle soda water fountains to make them contactless. Instead of touching the drink dispensers, mobile clients can scan a QR code with a smartphone and choose a beverage from a digital menu.
The acquisition of Briggo is another action by Coca-Cola towards contending more directly with Starbucks, Dunkin’, and other chains that offer coffee. Coke last year got Costa, a U.K. coffee chain that runs thousands of shops in more than 30 nations, for $5.1 billion to broaden into a faster-growing beverage category. At the time of the acquisition, the coffee category was growing 6% a year, according to Coca-Cola.
The addition of Briggo to Costa’s portfolio offers the chain more versatility to expand distribution, especially in high-traffic areas or areas where space is restricted. Briggo’s coffee stands are 40 square feet in size, which is small enough to set up in locations like developing lobbies and other busy locations. Briggo was founded in 2009 and opened its very first coffee-dispensing kiosk on the University of Texas campus two years later on.
Last year, Briggo signed an agreement with SSP America to set up kiosks at dozens of airports in the U.S. and Canada, per a company statement. The startup’s areas consist of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, the Austin Convention Center, and Dell Technologies, the American-Statesman reported. While the occurring pandemic has led to steep drops in air travel, foot traffic at airports ideally will recuperate when the health crisis subsides, and the automated kiosks may attract customers seeking to limit interactions with other individuals.
