This morning, my group went to visit Cafe Britt. This coffee company is known for its creativity and innovation within the coffee industry. Furthermore, it was suprising to me when I first discovered that, while their coffee is loved by tourists, most Ticos do not drink it. I believe that this is due to the marketing strategies employed by Cafe Britt. Their advertisements make the brand appear very highend. Thus, Ticos perceive their coffee as a gift rather than something they would personally want to consume. This leads into the part of their approach that I would do differently. Cafe Britt should establish two different advertising techniques which would target tourists and Ticos seperately. The technique for tourists would remain the same. However, they would likely get more Tico customers if they used more mainstream advirtising techniques. For instance, they could make a commercial which shows a mother drinking Cafe Britt coffee, and that enabling her to comfortably endure a hectic day of work and caring for her kids. This would make Cafe Britt seem more accessible to the average person.
It was also startling for me to learn that coffee is not Cafe Britt’s most popular product. Since the organization’s products are mainly purchased by tourists, I would guess that their most popular products are souveneirs. This is because most tourists probably want a physical momento to take home instead of just something that they can eat or drink.
Another notable piece of information that I gained from the tour was how Cafe Britt is differentiated from Doka Estate. This is mainly due to the two organizations’ positions within the supply chain. Doka Estate primarily functioned as a supplier/manufacturer since it sourced and processed the coffee beans which could then be bought by other companies (like McDonalds). Cafe Britt, on the other hand, functions as a distrubutor because they roast and grind coffee which will be sent to other companies to sell. They additionally act as a retailer due to their products also being avaliable for purchase at Cafe Britt franchises and on their website.
Cafe Britt appears to be a very financially successful company. This is is partially related to my team’s topic, “make”. This involves how the company manufactures its final product. First of all, Cafe Britt sources their coffee from other organizations in order for that process to cost less and be more efficient. Next, there is a lot of back and forth between the sources and the manufacturers at Cafe Britt to make sure that their high quality remains consistent. This is done to help protect their brand image. To add to that, the machines the Cafe Britt utilizes to make and package its final product are quick and energy efficient. In overall, I agree with Cafe Britt’s approach in the coffee industry, and I am excited to learn more about other company’s approaches in the coming days of this program.