With duty on alcohol increasing by 2%, on top of the credit crunch, that ‘drink’ may increasingly be coffee… Gone are days of long business lunches, more likely it’s “a cup of coffee and a sandwich”.
As Helena Spicer, leisure analyst at Mintel, said recently in CITY AM: “Unlike a year ago, business meetings are now as likely to be conducted over a coffee as they are a multi-course meal. ‘Short and sober’ has replaced ‘long and boozy.”
But High Street coffee shops are not especially conducive to business conversations; trying to hold a business meeting on a tiny table, crushed between piles of shopping bags is not easy. One alternative is to create your own relaxed environment, an area less formal than a meeting room, a place where you would go after a meeting to continue discussions - essentially, a ‘coffee shop’ in-house. It’s easier to achieve than one might think
There are some great coffee systems available that are ideal for this purpose, for example the Nescafé Milano. Here is a compact machine that delivers an extensive range of premium hot drinks. With just three ingredients – coffee, whitener and hot chocolate – you can offer the full range of speciality coffees, black and white, as well as hot chocolate, all with minimum hassle. And, installation couldn’t be easier. The Milano System can be connected to a mains or portable water supply.
The next few years are going to be tough - even the consummate politician, Gordon Brown, has been forced to admit that. Companies will need to look at different ways of doing business and the in-house ‘coffee shop’ has a lot going for it.
For more information about the Milano system, call 0800 742 842 or visit Nescafé Beverage Solutions.